COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Aerials: Planning Permission

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many applications for installing a telecommunications mast were  (a) granted and  (b) refused in each parliamentary constituency in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many telecommunications masts were installed in each London borough in each of the last five years;
	(3)  how many telecommunications masts were given permission to be installed in each parliamentary constituency in each of the last five years.

Iain Wright: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Aerials: Planning Permission

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  if she will amend national planning guidance on mobile telephone masts to allow concerns over health issues to be taken into account by local planning authorities;
	(2)  what the timetable is for the revision of Planning Policy Guidance 8; and whether she intends to issue a consultation paper on its revision.

Iain Wright: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 24 May 2007,  Official Report, column 1524W. We intend to review the permitted development rights in relation Part 24 of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995. Following the completion of this review we will consider what, if any, changes might be necessary to Government Planning Policy in relation to telecommunications.
	We have not established our timetable for reviewing Planning Policy Guidance Note 8 on Telecommunications. We will consult on any substantive changes to this policy.

Aerials: Planning Permission

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will require all mobile telephone companies to apply for full planning permission for installation of mobile telephone masts.

Iain Wright: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 24 May 2007,  Official Report, column 1524W. We intend to review the permitted development rights in relation to Part 24 of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995. The aim of the review is to ensure that permitted development rights remain fit for purpose, particularly in the light of technological advances in telecommunications. I cannot prejudge the outcome of that review, but we will consult on any substantive proposals for change arising from it.

Departments: Aviation

Mark Prisk: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many flights to overseas destinations were taken by  (a) civil servants and  (b) Ministers in her Department in each of the last three calendar years; and what the total cost of such flights was.

Iain Wright: The information requested can be provided only at disproportionate cost. Since 1999, the Government have published on an annual basis, a list of all overseas visits by Cabinet Ministers costing in excess of £500, as well as the total cost of all ministerial travel overseas. Copies of the lists are available in the Libraries of the House. Information for 2006-07 is currently being compiled and will be published before the summer recess. All travel is undertaken in accordance with the 'Civil Service Management Code', the 'Ministerial Code' and 'Travel by Ministers'.

Departments: Pay

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many non-pensionable bonuses were awarded to members of staff in her Department in the last three years; and at what total cost.

Iain Wright: The numbers of non-pensionable bonuses for each of the last three years and the costs of these are tabulated as follows. These figures refer to bonuses paid under the terms of the annual pay settlements for staff working in the Department and its predecessor, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. Bonuses are paid to staff who exceed against their objectives for the year.
	The Department also operates a Special Bonus Scheme to reward exceptional performance over a limited period in particularly demanding tasks or situations, but records are not available to show the number of payments made under this scheme.
	In recent years the proportion of senior civil service pay which is linked to performance has been increased.
	
		
			   Number of bonuses  Cost of bonuses (£) 
			 2006 561 838,250 
			 2005 596 605,750 
			 2004 435 445, 000

Departments: Performance Appraisal

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many staff in her Department did not achieve an acceptable mark in their annual report in 2006-07.

Iain Wright: On the basis of outcomes agreed and recorded to date a total of 14 staff in the Department did not meet their objectives for the year 2006-07.

Departments: Public Transport

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what incentives she has considered to encourage staff in her Department to use public transport.

Iain Wright: The main incentive the Department offers are interest-free loans for season tickets for travel to work via public transport. Use of public transport is also encouraged by limited car parking, flexible working, the use of public transport during the course of travel and making use of travel websites and information services, such as Transport Direct.

Fire Services: Standards

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what targets her Department has issued to local authorities on the performance of fire services.

Parmjit Dhanda: The Fire and Rescue National Framework sets out the priorities and objectives for all fire and rescue authorities in England, The framework is a statutory guidance document which is laid before Parliament and the current framework is for 2006-08. Within the framework we provide details of any targets set for fire and rescue authorities and for local authorities where they have a fire function e.g. county fire and rescue authorities. Since April 2005 the Government have had a public service agreement target which is:
	"By 2010, reduce the number of accidental fire related deaths in the home by 20 per cent. and the number of deliberate fires by 10 per cent."
	Fire and rescue authorities have largely been responsible for delivering this target and the reduction in fire deaths and deliberate fires has already been achieved but this performance must be sustained until 2010 to meet the target in full. Fire and rescue authorities also have an efficiency target to deliver which commenced in April 2005 of £105 million of cashable efficiency savings by 2007-08. Again, fire and rescue authorities are on track to deliver this efficiency target. Further information on these targets and other priorities for the fire and rescue service can be found within the national framework document.

Housing: Bournemouth

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what targets for building homes Bournemouth borough council is expected to meet; and by when.

Iain Wright: holding answer 10 July 2007
	 The Bournemouth, Dorset and Poole Structure Plan, adopted in 2001, sets out an average figure for new housing delivery in Bournemouth of 523 dwellings per annum up to 2011.
	The draft South West Regional Spatial Strategy, which recently completed its examination in public, states a range for 2006-26 of between 680 and 780 dwellings per annum.

Housing: Disadvantaged

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what public funds were spent on the Supporting People strategy in each year since its inception.

Iain Wright: The Supporting People programme is administered and delivered locally by 150 top tier local authorities.
	The following table details the amount spent on Supporting People services since 2003, as reported to the Department by local authorities.
	
		
			   £ 
			 2003-04 1,759,796,581 
			 2004-05 1,752,082,661 
			 2005-06 1,688,430,624

Housing: Low Incomes

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of affordable home completions in each of the last five years for which records are available were sold for  (a) less than (i) £40,000, (ii) £50,000, (iii) £60,000, (iv) £70,000, (v) £80,000, (vi) £90,000, (vii) £100,000, (viii) £110,000, (ix) £120,000 and  (b) more than £120,000; and what the figures were in each year in each case for the South West.

Iain Wright: Information on affordable dwelling sales is not available centrally in the format requested. However, information recorded by registered social landlords on the proportion of all their affordable dwellings sold at a discounted sale price and the sale of equity shares of shared ownership dwellings and open market properties with the help of an equity loan to improve affordability is given for England in the following table 1 and for South West in table 2.
	The information in the tables reflects the fact that the majority of shared equity purchasers are buying in London and the South East. However, the number of shared ownership and equity loans completions per annum in the South West has nearly doubled over the last five years.
	
		
			  Table 1: Proportion of RSL dwellings sold in England by year and sale price( 1) 
			  Percentage 
			   2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07( 2) 
			 <£40,000 52 48 42 26 22 
			 £40,000 to £49,999 9 6 6 5 5 
			 £50,000 to £59,999 8 7 7 7 10 
			 £60,000 to £69,999 7 7 8 10 14 
			 £70,000 to £79,999 6 6 7 10 12 
			 £80,000 to £89,999 5 5 6 9 10 
			 £90,000 to £89,999 3 6 6 8 7 
			 £100,000 to £109,999 3 4 4 6 4 
			 £110,000 to £119,999 1 4 3 4 4 
			 >=£120,000 2 6 8 11 7 
			 Unknown price 4 1 1 2 6 
			 (1 )Discounted sale price for complete dwelling sales and equity share for shared ownership dwelling and equity loan sales. (2) Provisional  Source:  Housing Corporation CORE Sales returns 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Proportion of RSL dwellings sold in South West by year and sale price( 1) 
			   2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07( 2) 
			 <£40,000 48 26 19 9 6 
			 £40,000 to £49,999 16 12 8 6 7 
			 £50,000 to £59,999 12 18 13 14 17 
			 £60,000 to £69,999 8 16 17 19 21 
			 £70,000 to £79,999 5 10 12 17 19 
			 £80,000 to £89,999 3 7 10 12 11 
			 £90,000 to £89,999 2 5 8 8 9 
			 £100,000 to £109,999 1 3 6 5 3 
			 £110,000 to £119,999 0 2 3 3 2 
			 >=£120,000 0 2 4 4 3 
			 Unknown price 4 1 0 2 2 
			 (1 )Discounted sale price for complete dwelling sales and equity share for shared ownership dwelling and equity loan sales. (2) Provisional  Source:  Housing Corporation CORE Sales returns

Housing: Low Incomes

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether the definition of affordable housing takes account of  (a) average local wages,  (b) geographical location and  (c) whether the house is to be (i) bought outright, (ii) bought with shared equity and (iii) rented.

Iain Wright: holding answer 9 July 2007
	 Annex B to "Planning Policy Statement 3: Housing" defines affordable housing as housing sold or rented at below market rates, to eligible groups, where there is provision for the home to remain at an affordable price for future eligible households. The definition includes that affordable housing
	"should meet the needs of eligible households, including availability at a cost low enough for them to afford, determined with regard to local incomes and local house prices".
	The definition comprises social rented housing and intermediate housing (shared equity products, other low cost homes for sale and intermediate rent).

Local Government: Equal Pay

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the total back pay liability for all expected years is in respect of each local authority that has applied for a capitalisation direction in respect of equal pay; and how much each authority is seeking to have capitalised.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 10 July 2007,  Official Report, column 1430W.

Rates and Rating: Aerials

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many mobile telephone masts were on the Valuation Office Agency's ratings list in the areas of  (a) Guildford borough council and  (b) Waverley borough council (i) in 2000 and (ii) at the most recent date for which the information is available.

Iain Wright: Statutory Instrument (SI) No 2421 changed the basis for assessing masts for rating purposes. Therefore, to provide an answer on a consistent basis, the following dates have been used.
	As at 31 March 2003, the Rating List included 79 'Communication Masts' in Guildford borough council and 34 in Waverley borough council. As at 31 March 2007, the corresponding numbers were 120 for Guildford and 32 for Waverley. Not all 'Communication Masts' are mobile telephone masts; the Valuation Office Agency's database does not distinguish between mobile telephone masts and those used for other purposes.

DEFENCE

Armed Forces: Housing

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total expenditure was on armed forces accommodation in each year since 1997.

Derek Twigg: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 16 January 2007,  Official Report, column 1008W, and my letter of 20 March 2007, a copy of which is available in the Library of the House.

Armed Forces: Mental Health Services

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many  (a) psychologists,  (b) psychiatrists,  (c) mental health nurses and  (d) occupational therapists each service employed in (i) 2006 and (ii) 2007.

Derek Twigg: Psychologists and occupational therapists are not employed in the armed forces. The following tables list the numbers of consultant psychiatrists and mental health nurses employed in each service on 1 April 2006 and 1 April 2007.
	
		
			   Manning 
			  Consultant psychiatrists  
			  RN  
			 2006 2 
			 2007 2 
			   
			  Army  
			 2006 6 
			 2007 6 
			   
			  RAF  
			 2006 5 
			 2007 5 
			   
			  Mental health nurses  
			  RN  
			 2006 21 
			 2007 21 
			   
			  Army  
			 2006 43 
			 2007 41 
			   
			  RAF  
			 2006 33 
			 2007 36 
			  Source: DMSD quarterly manning return 1 April 2006/1 April 2007

Armed Forces: Recruitment

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what budget was provided to each of the armed forces for recruitment purposes in each year since 1992.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 5 July 2007
	Information for all years since 1992 is not held centrally in the format requested. Nevertheless, the known recruitment budgets for the Army and RAF for all years since 1998-99 are as follows:
	
		
			  £ million 
			   Army  RAF 
			 1998-99 49.5 27.1 
			 1999-2000 53.0 27.6 
			 2000-01 53.8 26.3 
			 2001-02 65.4 28.6 
			 2002-03 64.9 29.1 
			 2003-04 70.8 n/a 
			 2004-05 76.1 n/a 
			 2005-06 89.1 n/a 
			 2006-07 86.9 n/a 
		
	
	In 2003, the RAF's recruitment budget was merged with that for Initial Officer Training and cannot be separated out.
	I will write to the hon. Member with the information for the Naval Service annual recruiting budget and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.

Copthorne Barracks

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the running costs of Copthorne Barracks in Shrewsbury were in  (a) 2004,  (b) 2005 and  (c) 2006.

Derek Twigg: The approximate infrastructure running costs of Copthorne Barracks in each of the last three financial years were as follows:
	
		
			  Financial year  £ million 
			 2004-05 1.5 
			 2005-06 1.9 
			 2006-07 1.1 
		
	
	The introduction of Regional Prime Contracting in 2006-07 altered the way in which infrastructure costs are accounted for, in that not all maintenance costs can now be attributed to a particular site. The figure for 2006-07 is not therefore directly comparable to the figures for previous years.

Departments: Consultants

Michael Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department spent on  (a) management consultants and  (b) other external consultants and advisers in each year since 2000; and which of these consultants undertook work for the Department with a total contractual value in excess of £10 million over this period.

Derek Twigg: Summaries of MOD expenditure on external assistance (which includes management consultants and other external consultants and advisers) are available in the Library of the House for the years 1995-96 to 2005-06.
	Figures for financial year 2006-07 will be placed in the Library before summer recess.
	The information on which consultants undertook work for the Department with a total contractual value in excess of £10 million is not held centrally in the form requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Information on organisations, including management consultancy firms, paid £5 million or more by my Department in each financial year is published in the UK Defence Statistics. However, these figures do not differentiate between consultancy spend and non-consultancy expenditure.

Departments: Pensions

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many and what percentage of staff in his Department are making additional voluntary contributions to their pensions; and what steps he has taken in the last 12 months to encourage more people to make such contributions.

Derek Twigg: Approximately 2,200 members of the Civil Service Pension arrangements in the Ministry of Defence (2.7 per cent. of the total Civil Service Pension schemes members employed by the Department) currently make additional voluntary pension contributions through deductions from their pay.
	Pension scheme members receive an annual benefit statement showing the pension built up to date, and also a projection of pension on retirement if the member continues in service to scheme pension age. The benefit statement provides details of the Civil Service Pensions website where staff can obtain further information, including on options for making additional voluntary contributions to boost their pension. The Defence Intranet also provides staff with information on how to boost their pension and an annual office notice is issued to remind staff of the opportunity to have non-consolidated pay or bonuses paid into an additional voluntary contributions fund.

Explosions: Noise

John Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many complaints about noise caused by explosions at Shoeburyness were received from residents living in  (a) Maldon District,  (b) Chelmsford Borough,  (c) Rochford District,  (d) Colchester Borough,  (e) Tendring District,  (f) Southend on Sea,  (g) Castlepoint District and  (h) Kent in each year since 1995.

Derek Twigg: The number of complaints received by the Ministry of Defence about noise caused by explosions, demolition and gunfire at Shoeburyness in each year since 1995 is set out as follows:
	
		
			  District  1995  1996  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007( 1) 
			 Maldon 56 91 23 49 58 48 51 50 19 8 4 4 7 
			 Chelmsford 5 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 
			 Rochford 60 48 45 31 86 48 74 16 2 0 0 0 3 
			 Colchester 12 44 5 20 23 38 22 14 13 3 3 10 0 
			 Tendring 107 206 79 129 222 322 239 154 127 56 110 87 7 
			 Southend 33 109 30 65 52 48 35 25 3 6 2 3 1 
			 Castlepoint 2 1 6 5 10 1 3 0 2 0 0 0 0 
			 Kent 360 155 91 335 543 333 477 217 48 75 158 112 30 
			 Total 635 656 279 634 995 838 901 476 216 148 277 216 48 
			 (1) Year to 4 July 2007. 
		
	
	Figures up to the end of 2005 are based solely on telephone complaints to a dedicated helpline. Those for 2006 and 2007 are from all sources of complaints.

Housing: Telephone Services

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many calls received by Modern Housing Solutions were subsequently passed to Transco in each of the last 12 months.

Derek Twigg: The number of calls received by Modern Housing Solutions (MHS) that were passed to Transco is as follows:
	
		
			  Month  Number 
			  2006  
			 July 2 
			 August 7 
			 September 4 
			 October 4 
			 November 6 
			 December 3 
			   
			  2007  
			 January 3 
			 February 8 
			 March 7 
			 April 7 
			 May 6 
			 June 5 
			 Total 62

Military Bases: Europe

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what British military bases there are on the continent of Europe.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 5 July 2007
	The following table lists all of the main Establishments where the Ministry of Defence has a land ownership interest in (either freehold or long leasehold) on the continent of Europe.
	
		
			  Establishment name  Country 
			 Akrotiri Air Base Cyprus 
			 Dhekelia Garrison Cyprus 
			 Episkopi Garrison Cyprus 
			 Ayios Nikolaos Cyprus 
			 Troodos Cyprus 
			 Gibraltar Garrison Gibraltar 
			 Gutersloh Garrison Germany 
			 Hohne Garrison Germany 
			 Osnabruck Garrison Germany 
			 Paderborn Garrison Germany 
			 Rheindahlen Garrison Germany

Military Bases: Wales

John Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what information he has received from the Defence Training Review preferred bidder on the discussions it has had with  (a) business,  (b) local government and  (c) academic leaders in South Wales on future plans for MoD St. Athan; and which organisations have taken part in such discussions;
	(2)  what information he has received from the Defence Training Review preferred bidder on discussions it has had with elected representatives in South Wales about future plans for MoD St. Athan; and who took part in those discussions;
	(3)  what information he has received from the Defence Training Review preferred bidder on discussions it has had with local organisations and community groups in the Vale of Glamorgan on the future plans for MoD St. Athan; and which organisations and groups were involved in those discussions.

Derek Twigg: Metrix UK meets regularly with members of the Welsh Assembly Government, Community Councils (Llantwit Major, St. Athan, Llanmaes, Llandow, St. Bride's, Ewenny, Wick, Llangan and St. Donat), local (South Wales) business leaders, and leaders of all the main parties represented in the National Assembly.

Military Bases: Wales

John Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the principal surface access routes to MoD St. Athan will be  (a) during and  (b) after the construction of the new military training academy.

Derek Twigg: Negotiations are under way between the Welsh Assembly Government, MOD and Metrix to formulate an agreement which will include access arrangements for the Aerospace Business Park and the proposed Defence Training Academy.

Veterans Day

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total cost was of the events of Veterans Day 2007.

Derek Twigg: We are not able to calculate the total costs of events to mark Veterans Day 2007 as many of these are borne by event organisers and are not collected by the Department. The MOD committed approximately £470,000 to such events from its veterans budget. However, this figure does not include the costs of participation by armed forces units, such as military bands, in events organised to celebrate the country's veterans; these costs cannot be separately identified but the involvement of such units has not been large scale.

War Pensions

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cash  (a) provision and  (b) outturn was for the (i) War Pensions Benefits Programme, (ii) War Pensions Benefits Programme—Far Eastern Prisoners of War and (iii) War Pensions Benefits Programme costs—British Limbless Ex-Servicemen's Association request for resources subheads in each financial year since 1997.

Derek Twigg: The Ministry of Defence does not measure financial performance in cash terms. The nearest approximation is 'near cash' which comprises cash expenditure and adjustments relating to accrued and pre-paid expenditure. Details relating to the financial years from 1997 to 2002 are not available to the Ministry of Defence as responsibility for reporting financial performance was only transferred in 2002. Prior to this the financial reporting was the responsibility of the Department for Social Security, now the Department for Work and Pensions. The near cash provision for total war pensions expenditure for the years 2002-03 to 2006-07 was:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2002-03 1,186,720,000 
			 2003-04 1,158,005,000 
			 2004-05 1,161,221,000 
			 2005-06 1,072,972,000 
			 2006-07 1,047,661,000 
		
	
	The near cash outturn for the years 2002-03 to 2006-07 was:
	
		
			  £ 
			   (i) War pensions costs  (ii) Far eastern prisoners of war costs  (iii) British Limbless Ex-Servicemen's costs  Total war pension expenditure 
			 2002-03 1,161,995,058 4,270,000 n/a 1,166,265,058 
			 2003-04 1,113,557,403 3,210,000 3,000 1,116,770,403 
			 2004-05 1,100,266,108 9,810,000 7,000 1,110,083,108 
			 2005-06 1,065,402,752 3,730,000 3,000 1,069,135,752 
			 2006-07 1,035,083,980 3,490,000 0 1,038,573,980 
		
	
	Costs relating to the British Limbless Ex-Servicemen's Association were not separately recorded until 2003-04.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Flood Control

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which local flood protection and prevention schemes, for which cost benefit analysis has been undertaken, were cancelled or postponed in each of the last five years; and what the reasons for cancellation and postponement were in each case.

Phil Woolas: Operating authorities (OAs), that is, the Environment Agency, local authorities and internal drainage boards, are required to produce annual Medium Term Plans (MTPs) setting out their proposed flood protection and prevention schemes for the following three years. Each project will include some form of cost benefit analysis and this will form part of the calculation of the priority score for the scheme. A fully detailed cost benefit analysis is only likely to have been undertaken when a scheme comes forward for final approval either internally in the Environment Agency or, historically, by DEFRA.
	MTPs contain a mixture of schemes, some are well advanced and ready to proceed and others are in the early stages of design. There are many more schemes awaiting funding than are able to be afforded in any one year. The list of schemes in the MTP will be added to as new ones are identified by OAs and may displace others with lower priority scores. There are many schemes in the MTP for which a need can be defined but which have a very low priority score. These are unlikely to receive funding for many years, if at all, but are nevertheless promoted by the OA. These should not be regarded as "cancelled or postponed" because they have never received funding approval and, for this reason, the information is not available in the form requested.

Floods: Lancashire

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans he has to improve the flood defence system in East Lancashire.

Phil Woolas: I am advised by the Environment Agency that the Ribble Catchment Flood Management Plan, which will identify the high level sustainable policies for future flood risk management within the catchment over the next 50 to 100 years, is now in its final stages of preparation. The Burnley, Nelson and Colne and the Darwen (including Blackburn) Flood Risk Management Strategies are currently being developed to identify specific scheme needs within those sub-catchments.
	The Barrowford Flood Alleviation Scheme has recently been completed. Croasdale Brook, Slaidburn, Flood Alleviation Scheme has recently been completed. Walverden Water and Hendon Brook Flood Alleviation Scheme has been approved and is awaiting funding allocation. Investigations are in progress to identify potential flood risk protection measures at Bolton-by-Bowland and Sawley.
	Detailed hydraulic modelling has been completed on Mearley Brook at Clitheroe, and flood risk mapping is being finalised for the area. New Flood Warning Areas continue to be introduced in the highest risk areas such as the River Hyndburn at Accrington, River Calder at Padiham and Green Brook at Padiham. Existing Flood Warning services are also being improved on a continual basis.
	The Environment Agency continues to maintain and invest to prevent deterioration of assets in East Lancashire. 97 per cent. of defences are currently in a good condition.

Water: EC Action

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans he has for increasing the  (a) funding and  (b) staffing of the Catchment Sensitive Farming programme in meeting the requirements of the EU Water Framework Directive; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: Resources for catchment sensitive farming will depend on departmental plans currently being considered as part of the comprehensive spending review.

Wood: Imports

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what percentage of the UK's timber needs are met by imported material.

Joan Ruddock: In 2005, the latest year for which figures have been published, it was estimated that 52.5 million cubic metres of wood raw material equivalent was imported and 8.6 million cubic metres was produced in the UK.
	Exports, including materials produced from both imported and domestically grown timber for use or re-use outside the UK, were 16.5 million cubic metres of wood raw material equivalent, so UK apparent consumption was 44.6 million cubic metres. Imports therefore made up 81 per cent. of apparent consumption.
	Around one third of the wood products imported to the UK in 2005 were imported as softwood (round and sawn). A further one third were imported as paper, 15 per cent. were imported as wood based panels and 13 per cent. as pulp. Paper (20 per cent.) and recovered paper (57 per cent.) accounted for the majority of exports of wood products from the UK in 2005.

Wood: Procurement

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what percentage of the Government's  (a) domestic and  (b) imported timber supplies are procured from sustainable sources.

Joan Ruddock: There are not sufficient current data available from which accurate figures on Government's purchase of sustainably produced timber could be deduced. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is engaged on an exercise designed to identify options for developing a reliable system that all central Departments in England could use to report their timber purchases.

TRANSPORT

Bus Services: North West Region

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much was spent by her Department on bus subsidy in the north-west of England in the last 12 months, broken down by constituency.

Rosie Winterton: The Department provides grants to local transport authorities through the Rural Bus Subsidy Grant, Rural and Urban Bus Challenge and Kickstart schemes. A total of £7.853 million was paid under these schemes to local authorities in the north-west region in the financial year 2006-07. The Department also provides Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) directly to operators of local bus services. We estimate that BSOG payments to operators in the north-west region total around £55 million annually. In addition, the majority of local authority support for bus services is funded from the Government's unhypothecated Revenue Support Grant and from other sources.
	The Department does not hold information in a form that would enable these figures to be broken down by parliamentary constituency.

Databases: Parking

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether there is a national record of parking areas.

Rosie Winterton: As far as I am aware, there is no comprehensive and accurate national record of parking areas. However, Transport Direct is creating a database of off-street publicly accessible parking for Great Britain which can be viewed at
	www.transportdirect.info.

Departments: Private Finance Initiative

Jacqui Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the total cost is of all private finance initiative projects for which her Department has responsibility completed since 1997; and what the projected cost is of such projects commissioned or under way.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The HM Treasury website provides updated details (on a six monthly basis) of awarded PFI projects overseen by the Department of Transport. The project details include the date of financial close, total capital value and the annual unitary charge payment. This information is available at:
	http://www.hm-treasurygov.uk/documents/public-private_partnerships/ppp_pfi_stats.cfm
	The Treasury website includes unitary charge payments up until 2033-34. The following projects overseen by the Department for Transport involve payments beyond that date:
	 Docklands Light Railway Woolwich  e xtension
	2034-35 estimated unitary charge £12.2 million
	 A1 Darrington to Dishforth
	2034-35 estimated unitary charge £52.2 million
	2035-36 estimated unitary charge £53.5 million
	 Doncaster interchange
	2034-35 estimated unitary charge £3.86 million
	2035-36 estimated unitary charge £3.86 million
	2036-37 estimated unitary charge £3.86 million
	2037-38 estimated unitary charge £3.86 million
	2038-39 estimated unitary charge £0.965 million
	The forecasts of future payments are subject to the performance of the private sector contractor.
	The unitary charge payments represent repayments of the capital (sum of the capital spend) of the project and will also frequently include inflation, service provision, capital repayments and major refurbishments.

Railway Stations: Chorley

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  if she will make a statement on progress being made on the development of a railway station at Buckshaw Village, Chorley;
	(2)  whether an agreement has been reached with rail operating companies for trains to stop at the proposed railway station at Buckshaw Village, Chorley; and if she will make a statement;
	(3)  when she expects work  (a) to begin and  (b) to be completed on the construction of the railway station at Buckshaw Village, Chorley.

Tom Harris: This is a project that is being led by Lancashire county council with Network Rail. I understand that Lancashire county council has yet to finalise the detailed project plan which would provide dates for key milestones, but that it is planning for the station to be operational by 2008 provided the funding is in place.

Railways

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the average load factor is, expressed as a percentage of seats occupied, on passenger trains running on the UK rail network.

Tom Harris: The Department only holds data pertaining to the morning and evening peaks for commuter services in London and the south-east, which is in the following table. It is not possible to disaggregate seats occupied from total capacity as data are not held in this form.
	
		
			   Total load factor 
			   Percentage 
			  Train operator  In am peak  In pm peak  Aggregated peaks 
			 one 82.0 75.2 78.7 
			 C2C 78.0 72.3 75.3 
			 Chiltern 72.5 61.5 66.9 
			 Southeastern 84.1 67.4 75.9 
			 Stagecoach South West Trains 89.3 70.6 80.0 
			 Southern 82.5 70.8 77.0 
			 First Great Western 90.0 71.5 81.1 
			 First Capital Connect 80.0 74.3 77.1 
			 Silverlink 72.8 65.1 68.9 
		
	
	The table is based on annual counts undertaken by train operators during autumn 2006. Data for other train operators running on the UK rail network are not available.

TREASURY

Crosby Review

Brian Binley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects the report of the Crosby review of identity management to be published.

Andy Burnham: Sir James Crosby has been asked to deliver his report to Ministers by late summer.

Departments: Hotels

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  pursuant to the answer of 20 June 2007,  Official Report, column 1879W, on Departments: hotels, if he will set out the figures for 2006-07 for  (a) HM Treasury,  (b) the Debt Management Office,  (c) the Royal Mint and  (d) the Office of Government Commerce, including subsistence, as in the answer of 16 October 2006,  Official  Report, column 1060W, on departmental expenditure;
	(2)  how much was spent by  (a) his Department,  (b) its agencies and  (c) its non-departmental public bodies on hotel and other privately-provided accommodation (i) in the UK and (ii) abroad for (A) Ministers, (B) staff and (C) others in 2006-07.

David Simpson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much was spent on overnight accommodation by civil servants within his Department's areas of responsibilities in the last 12 months.

Angela Eagle: The available information is presented in the following table. As explained in the answer given by the then Financial Secretary (John Healey) on 16( )October 2006, in most cases, the bodies' accounting systems do not record accommodation costs separately, so the figures are for subsistence, which includes accommodation and associated allowances for meals. Therefore further analysis could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Information relating to overseas travel by Ministers is published on an annual basis. Information for the period 2 May 1997 to 31 March 2006 is available in the Library of the House. Information for the financial year 2006-07 is currently being compiled and is due to be published shortly.
	All travel and subsistence is conducted in accordance with the requirements of the Ministerial Code, Travel by Ministers and the Civil Service Management Code.
	
		
			  Department/Agency/NDPB  Type of Travel  2006-07 (£000) 
			 HM Treasury(1) UK 98 
			  Overseas 308 
			 Debt Management Office UK 3 
			  Overseas 3 
			 Office of Government Commerce UK 476 
			  Overseas 20 
			 OGCbuying.solutions(2) All 284 
			 Valuation Office Agency(3) All 633 
			 HM Revenue and Customs(4) UK 14,100 
			  Overseas 376 
			 Royal Mint(5) All 401 
			 National Savings and Investments All 121 
			 Office for National Statistics(6) UK 713 
			  Overseas 78 
			 Government Actuary's Department UK 7 
			  Overseas 15 
			 Statistics Commission UK 2 
			  Overseas 1 
			 (1) Treasury figures include Ministers, staff and other persons. (2 )OGCbuying.solutions figures are for accommodation only, excluding meals, including both UK and overseas accommodation. (3 )The Valuation Office Agency figure represents costs of UK and overseas accommodation only. Figures previously provided for preceding years have included subsistence and other supplementary costs which were unable to be separated except at disproportionate cost. The figure of £525,000 for 2006-07 provided on 20 June was subject to audit adjustments, which have now been agreed. (4 )The HM Revenue and Customs figures are for accommodation only, unlike figures previously reported for earlier years, where the method for recording such expenditure made disaggregating accommodation expenditure from subsistence possible only at disproportionate cost. (5) The amount for The Royal Mint includes both UK and overseas subsistence. (6 )The Office for National Statistics figures represent accommodation only. Figures previously reported for preceding years included travel and subsistence, as well as accommodation. The method of recording expenditure made disaggregating accommodation possible at disproportionate cost only.

Football Association: World Cup

Don Foster: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what occasions  (a) he or his predecessor,  (b) Ministers in his Department and  (c) representatives of his Department met the Football Association to discuss an English bid for the 2018 World Cup (i) before the feasibility study by his Department and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport into holding the World Cup in England began and (ii) while the study was in progress; and what such meetings have taken place since the study was completed.

Andy Burnham: Treasury officials met the Football Association between January 2006 and February 2007 following the announcement that a feasibility study into hosting a football World Cup would be conducted.
	Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.

NHS: Finance

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether HM Treasury received recommendations from the Audit Commission in 2006 on changes to the resource accounting and budgeting system in the NHS.

Andy Burnham: The 'Audit Commission Review of the NHS Financial Management and Accounting Regime' was published on 26 July 2006.

NHS: Finance

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what guidance was given to the Department of Health on changes to the resource accounting and budgeting system in NHS trusts in 2006-07.

Andy Burnham: The Department of Health announced the reversal of RAB deductions and the replacement of cash brokerage with a formal system of loans for NHS trusts on 28 March 2007. This was done in agreement with HM Treasury.

NHS: Finance

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what preparations were made by HM Treasury for the introduction of the resource accounting and budgeting system in the NHS.

Andy Burnham: The Treasury fully introduced resource accounting and budgeting to Government Departments in 2001 with the Resource Accounting Manual (RAM) and other guidance made available to Departments. HM Treasury also provided resource accounting and budgeting training. The Government Financial Reporting Manual has now replaced the Resource Accounting Manual and is available at:
	www.financial-reporting.gov.uk
	The Department of Health introduced a version of resource accounting and budgeting to the NHS. Guidance on introduction of RAB was issued to the NHS by the Department of Health in 2000 and consolidated guidance was issued in February 2001.

DUCHY OF LANCASTER

Civil Servants: Higher Education

John Hayes: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many university places are funded for in-service courses for civil servants; if he will list the courses so provided; and what the cost is of such courses to the public purse.

Gillian Merron: Information on the number of university places funded for in-service courses for civil servants is not held centrally by the Cabinet Office.

Departments: Common Purpose

Philip Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how much his Department paid to Common Purpose in each of the last five years; for what purpose; and what the outcome of the expenditure was.

Gillian Merron: Payments made to Common Purpose between 2002-03 and 2005-06 can be found in the table as follows.
	
		
			   £ 
			 2002-03 5,523 
			 2003-04 165 
			 2004-05 0 
			 2005-06 0 
		
	
	These payments were made in connection with Cabinet Office staff attending either training programmes or conferences run by Common Purpose.
	Details of the outcome of the expenditure can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Details of any payments made to Common Purpose in 2006-07 will be available when the Department's resource accounts are fully audited and laid before Parliament. This is expected to be before the 2007 summer recess.

Departments: Private Finance Initiative

Jacqui Lait: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what the total cost is of all private finance initiative projects for which his Office has responsibility completed since 1997; and what the projected cost is of such projects commissioned or under way.

Gillian Merron: The Cabinet Office has not completed any private finance initiative projects since 1997 and none are currently under way. The National School of Government has one private finance initiative contract in place in relation to its base at Sunningdale Park. Since that came into effect in May 2002 payments totalling £16.924 million have been made to the private sector partner. Future guaranteed payments in respect of the deal until 2017 total £22.650 million. These payments are conditional on the performance of the private sector contractor.

Disadvantaged: Blackpool

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether his officials plan to meet frontline staff and key stakeholders in Blackpool as part of his Department's Families at Risk review.

Gillian Merron: Officials in the Cabinet Office visited Blackpool in April and May this year as part of the Families At Risk review (FARR). They met with a range of frontline staff and key stakeholders from Blackpool council and the Springboard Project.

Government Departments

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what the title is of each piece of guidance issued to Government Departments by the Cabinet Office since 27 June 2007.

Gillian Merron: The Cabinet Office provides guidance and assistance to other Government Departments as necessary in carrying out their work. Most of this is of an informal nature between officials and as such it is not possible to provide the information requested.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Departments: Public Transport

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what incentives he has considered to encourage staff in his Department to use public transport.

Jim Murphy: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office does not offer its staff in the UK direct incentives to use public transport. However, we have in place policies which contribute to staff using more sustainable methods of transport. We provide an advance of salary to help staff obtain season tickets for home to office travel. We offer interest-free loans for the purchase of bicycles, provide racks, showers and changing facilities. We also encourage staff to use a range of flexible working arrangements thereby reducing their travelling to and from work. Where public transport is available, the majority of our staff use it.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Palestinian Territories

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with representatives in the Quartet on the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territories.

Douglas Alexander: On 26 June Quartet representatives briefed officials in Jerusalem on the situation in Gaza. Since then we have had regular contact with UN agencies. Food stocks are low but not yet critical. In the West Bank, the situation is stable. On 19 June DFID contributed £1 million to the International Committee of the Red Cross to address the humanitarian situation.

Aid Delivery

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what plans he has to improve the mechanisms for the delivery of aid.

Shahid Malik: We are committed to deliver aid in ways that maximise the benefits to poor people.
	The best aid supports countries' own strategies. We have an action plan to improve the predictability and effectiveness of UK aid and encourage other donors to do likewise. We have announced an Independent Advisory Committee for Development Impact to ensure we learn and apply lessons for aid delivery.
	We track the effectiveness of multilateral organisations to inform our funding decisions and drive reform. Working with others, we are assessing options to strengthen the ways in which donors and partner countries hold each other to account.

Palestinian Aid

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his assessment is of the role of private sector initiatives as a means of sustaining international aid to the Palestinians.

Douglas Alexander: A thriving private sector in the West Bank and Gaza will be an indispensable element of a lasting peace. Private sector initiatives will play a critical role once restrictions are eased on the movement of goods and people. We call on all Palestinians to end violence, and on Israel to relax its controls on movement and access, including by implementing the 2005 Movement and Access agreement.
	DFID is designing a new programme of support to assist Palestinian businesses become more competitive and better prepared to take advantage of any improvements in movement and access.

Zimbabwe

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment he has made of the humanitarian situation in Zimbabwe.

Douglas Alexander: A DFID humanitarian adviser visited Zimbabwe in June 2007 to assess the humanitarian situation and to inform the UK's response. Conditions in the country continue to deteriorate. The recent UN Food and Crop survey indicates that more than 3 million people will require food aid before the next harvest. Hyper-inflation is having a devastating impact on the poorest, particularly in urban areas. AIDS and declining public services are fuelling high mortality rates.
	Last year, DFID spent £33 million tackling hunger, vulnerability and HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe. All DFID funding in Zimbabwe goes through UN agencies and NGOs.

Infant Mortality

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department is taking to assist the development of health care systems to tackle infant mortality in developing countries; and if he will make a statement.

Shahid Malik: 40 per cent. of the 10.1 million childhood deaths take place within the first 28 days of life. Most infant deaths are preventable through access to basic health services, improved water and sanitation and better nutrition. Improving the health of infants goes hand-in-hand with improving the health of mothers. Levels of infant mortality are reducing in countries like Malawi, Tanzania and Bangladesh where DFID long-term funding is assisting Governments to invest in health workers, increasing access to family planning and skilled birth attendants at delivery, and increasing basic child health services such as immunisation, and treatment for pneumonia and diarrhoeal diseases.

Aid to Africa

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he is taking to improve the mechanisms for the delivery of aid to Africa.

Gareth Thomas: DFID is strongly committed to improving the delivery of aid in Africa. In 2005 we helped secure international agreement for principles to improve the effectiveness of donors' efforts. We have improved predictability of our aid by making multi-year commitments of budget support, for instance in Ghana, Tanzania and Mozambique and have a strong set of controls to manage the risk of misuse of funds, and we seek to strengthen partner Government financial systems.

Global Population Increases

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the likely impact of the projected increase in global population on levels of severe poverty; and if he will make a statement.

Shahid Malik: Rapid population growth, particularly in Africa, will make it harder for countries to achieve the millennium development goals and escape poverty. 99 per cent. of population growth will take place in developing countries and will make it more difficult for countries to maintain and increase investments to keep up with demands for health, education and other basic services. Experience shows that by improving health, education and livelihoods, and promoting gender equality and rights with good sexual and reproductive health information services and supplies, gives people the choice to have fewer children. Delivery of these basic services is central to DFID's work.

HIV and AIDS

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assistance he is giving to sub-Saharan countries to tackle HIV/AIDS; and whether his Department coordinates its actions with the Gates Foundation.

Gareth Thomas: DFID has committed to spend £1.5 billion to combat HIV and AIDS between 2005 and 2008. Africa will receive much of this through bilateral country programmes, which support HIV prevention, treatment and care services. International agencies such as the Global Fund for AIDS TB and Malaria are also supported.
	DFID works closely with the Gates Foundation on global policy, advocacy and support to national AIDS responses across Africa including development of HIV prevention technologies such as microbicides.

Congo

Eric Joyce: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with non-governmental organisations which operate within the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Gareth Thomas: DFID is in regular contact with British, international and Congolese NGOs working in DRC to discuss the programmes we fund as well as the broader development context.

Ethiopia: Overseas Aid

John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether there are any plans to review British aid to Ethiopia with a view to enhancing the programme when the treason trials are completed and the civil society activists detained are freed; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: DFID is currently preparing a new country strategy to support implementation of the Ethiopian Government's poverty strategy. The level and focus of DFID support will depend on an assessment of the Ethiopian Government's policies and plans on growth, poverty reduction and governance. We will be reviewing the track record of the Government on poverty reduction, priorities included in the new national plan for growth and poverty reduction, policies in place to improve the quality and effectiveness of government systems and commitments on governance and human rights.
	Within this context, we continue to follow closely the trials of opposition politicians and civil society leaders on which further developments are expected.

Sudan: Overseas Aid

Julie Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what aid he has committed to improve the humanitarian situation in Darfur.

Douglas Alexander: Since October 2003 DFID has committed over £145 million to emergency relief operations in Darfur. The UK has also contributed £73 million to the African Union Mission in Sudan for the protection of civilians.
	DFID has led international efforts for an effective humanitarian response in Sudan. We are pressing the Government of Sudan to remove bureaucratic obstacles that inhibit work on the ground. We support the Common Humanitarian Fund, which allows the UN Humanitarian Co-ordinator to direct resources towards those in greatest need.
	The Government will continue to work vigorously and at the highest level to secure a lasting peace in Darfur.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Ports

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many vessels docked in Northern Ireland ports from  (a) EU and  (b) non-EU states in each of the last two years.

Paul Goggins: This is now the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Administration.

Prisoners: Literacy

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what measures are in place to improve the rate of literacy amongst prisoners; and what other measures are in place to increase the prospects of a prisoner obtaining employment on release from prison.

Paul Goggins: The Prison Service provides a range of educational services at each prison with particular focus on increasing proficiency in basic literacy and numeracy skills. On committal to prison individuals are assessed to determine their standard of literacy and numeracy and, where appropriate, the level of entry into the Essential Skills Programme. Literacy skills are further encouraged through the use of library services.
	Employability potential is increased through a wide range of vocational training opportunities which include bricklaying, joinery, painting and decorating, IT, plastering and crafts.
	Job search terminals are installed in each of the three prisons to provide prisoners with up-to-date job information and recently, at Magilligan Prison, a new pilot programme (GOALS) was launched to help prepare prisoners for release and employment. The Prison Service works closely with other statutory, voluntary and community organisations such as NIACRO and Business in the Community in sourcing potential employment opportunities for inmates on release.

Trade Unions

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 
	(1)  what figures the Northern Ireland Certification Officer holds on the  (a) number and (b) proportion of trade union members, of each union, who have opted in to a political fund;
	(2)  if he will place in the Library a copy of the rules on trade union political funds published by the Northern Ireland Certification Officer.

Paul Goggins: These are now the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Administration.

Vandalism

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps have been taken to reduce the incidence of criminal damage in Northern Ireland.

Paul Goggins: The Northern Ireland Office Community Safety Unit funds and supports 26 multi-agency Community Safety Partnerships across the whole of Northern Ireland to undertake projects to tackle crime and antisocial behaviour, including criminal damage, in their areas.
	Organisations represented on the CSPs, including the Police Service of Northern Ireland, are also engaged in their own right in the delivery of projects and initiatives which will contribute to reduction of crime and antisocial behaviour, including criminal damage. In addition, the National Intelligence Model enables police commanders to identify crime problem areas such as prolific criminal damage and to allocate resources to deal with it.

PRIME MINISTER

Departments: Common Purpose

Philip Davies: To ask the Prime Minister how much his Office paid to Common Purpose in each of the last five years; for what purpose; and what the outcome of the expenditure was.

Gordon Brown: For these purposes my Office forms part of the Cabinet Office. I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office (Gillian Merron) today.

Honours

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it his policy not to have a Prime Minister's resignation honours list; and if he will make a statement.

Gordon Brown: It has not been the practice of Prime Ministers to set out a policy on this.

SCOTLAND

Departments: Older Workers

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland 
	(1)  what percentage of staff in his Department were over 60 years of age in each of the last three years;
	(2)  how many people aged  (a) over 55 years of age and  (b) over 60 years of age have been recruited by his Department in each of the last three years; and what percentage in each case this is of the number of new recruits in each year.

David Cairns: I refer the hon. Member to my reply to his question 143901 of 25 June 2007,  Official Report, column 2W.

Departments: Pay

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many non-pensionable bonuses were awarded to members of staff in his Department in the last three years; and at what total cost.

David Cairns: I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to my right hon. Friend the Member for Leicester, East (Keith Vaz) on 19 December 2006,  Official Report, column 1765W and to the hon. Member for Orkney and Shetland (Mr. Carmichael) on 13 June 2007,  Official Report, column 1048W.

Departments: Public Transport

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what estimate his Department has made of the number of its staff using public transport to commute.

David Cairns: The Scotland Office does not hold this information centrally as staff are seconded from the Scottish Executive or the Ministry of Justice.

Departments: Sick Leave

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many staff in his Department have taken  (a) five or more,  (b) four,  (c) three and  (d) two periods of sick leave of less than five days in the last 12 months.

David Cairns: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 22 June 2006,  Official Report, column 2047W.

Departments: Stationery

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much his Department spent on stationery in each of the last five years.

David Cairns: The information is as follows:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2002-03 (1)25,294 
			 2003-04 16,858 
			 2004-05 11,314 
			 2005-06 16,415 
			 2006-07 17,955 
			 (1) The Scotland Office provides a number of services, including stationery and office supplies, to the Office of the Advocate General for Scotland (OAG); prior to 2003-04, expenditure by OAG was not held separately.

Scottish Executive

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many meetings he and his predecessors have held with Scottish Executive Ministers in each of the last five years.

Des Browne: I and my predecessors have had numerous meetings with Scottish Executive Ministers in each of the last five years.

WALES

Departments: Disciplinary Proceedings

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many people in his Department have been  (a) disciplined and  (b) dismissed for (i) inappropriate use of the internet while at work and (ii) using work telephones to access premium rate telephone numbers in the last 12 months.

Peter Hain: None.

Departments: Racial Harassment

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many complaints of racial abuse relating to staff for which his Department is responsible have been  (a) investigated and  (b) upheld in the last 12 months.

Peter Hain: None.

EU Grants and Loans

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the First Minister on monies from Objective 1 funds returned to the Welsh Assembly Government by Welsh local authorities; and what consideration he has given to adding the returned funds to the Convergence Fund.

Peter Hain: I have regular meetings with the First Minister on a range of issues including Objective 1.
	I know that the Welsh Assembly Government are committed to ensuring the effective delivery of the Objective 1 Programme for West Wales and the Valleys. Where underspends are identified, the Wales European Funding Office recycles these within the programme. However, European Commission rules would not allow any surplus funds from one round of programme to be transferred to another.
	Furthermore, I am advised that the Welsh Assembly Government have achieved all annual spend (i.e. N+2) targets for the Objective 1 programme to date, and are on track to achieve the N+2 target for 2007.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Access to Work

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the budget for the Access to Work scheme in order to meet the Government's aspiration of getting a further million older people and a million people with disabilities into work.

Anne McGuire: The Access to Work budget has more than quadrupled since 1997, from £15 million to £64 million and now helps nearly three times as many people as it did ten years ago. However, Access to Work is only one of a range of measures which we have to help disabled people return to work, and most people currently claiming an incapacity benefit do not require help from this programme.
	The aspiration to reduce the number of people on incapacity benefits by 1 million over the course of a decade remains our overall long-term aim. We will do this by addressing the needs of each individual. We will help those already in work to stay in work if they become ill or disabled. We will also provide support to those already without work to help them find the right work for them and we will create the right environment for them to move into and keep a job. The support available includes our successful Pathways to Work programme, new deal for disabled people and a wide range of programmes provided by Jobcentre Plus, which includes Access to Work.

Access to Work

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the level of unmet demand has been in relation to applications for support under the Access to Work scheme during the last five years.

Anne McGuire: Access to Work is a demand-led programme and the budget has increased year-on-year to cope with the extra numbers of customers and has more than quadrupled since 1997, helping three times as many people. During the last five years, all customers who have been eligible for help under the current programme rules have been offered help through Access to Work. Therefore, there has not been any unmet demand.

Access to Work

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has undertaken of the  (a) value for money and  (b) effectiveness of publicity undertaken to promote the Access to Work scheme to employers.

Anne McGuire: The promotion of Access to Work comes under the wider Jobcentre Plus marketing budget. Around £125,000 was spent in 2005-06 on targeted marketing of Jobcentre Plus services for disabled people in disability magazines. The Department does not record specific marketing expenditure on Access to Work separately.
	Because Access to Work has not been marketed in isolation from the other disability programmes, it is not possible to evaluate how effective the overall marketing exercise has been for that specific programme.

Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  whether private enforcement of maintenance debt will be permitted under the new Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what plans he has to allow parents with care to take legal action to enforce child maintenance where  (a) maintenance and  (b) arrears has not been secured within a set time scale; and if he will make a statement.

James Plaskitt: We have given serious consideration to whether or not parents with care should be able to privately enforce maintenance debt under the new Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission. However we do not believe it is appropriate and I refer you to the Government's response to the Work and Pensions Select Committee report (CM7062 para 28).

Child Support Agency: Compensation

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to pay compensation to parents with care who are owed large arrears through the Child Support Agency which may never be collected; and if he will make a statement.

James Plaskitt: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 19 December 2006,  Official report, column 1990W.

Child Support Agency: Debt Collection

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the longest repayment schedule for Child Support Agency (CSA) arrears is which has been agreed by the CSA to date; and if he will make a statement.

James Plaskitt: The information requested is not available.

Child Support Agency: Debt Collection

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent estimate he has made of the number of non-resident parents owing arrears through the Child Support Agency who are now deceased.

James Plaskitt: The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Stephen Geraghty, dated 11 July 2007:
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary questions about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.
	You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent estimate he has made of the number of non-resident parents owing arrears through the Child Support Agency who are now deceased.
	The Agency is not able to provide an estimate of the number of non-resident parents owing arrears of child support maintenance who are deceased. Current legislation states once a non-resident parent dies, the Agency closes the case. The Agency would in such cases, if we were approached by the Executor of the Will accept an offer for child maintenance arrears. The Agency cannot make an approach directly to the Executor of the Will. It would be for the parent with care to pursue the Executor of the Will for maintenance arrears.
	Since the launch of the Agency the value of debt suspended due to this reason on the old computer system is £2.645 million, the equivalent value for the new system is not available.
	I hope this is helpful.

Children: Maintenance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of compliance rates for Child Support Agency maintenance paid by  (a) manual means,  (b) direct debit,  (c) standing order,  (d) maintenance direct,  (e) deduction of earnings order,  (f) deduction from benefits and  (g) other means in the last 12 months; what proportion of total maintenance was paid by each method in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

James Plaskitt: The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the chief executive. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Stephen Geraghty, dated 11 July 2007:
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary Questions about the Child Support Agency the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.
	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of compliance rates for Child Support Agency maintenance paid by (a) manual means (b) direct debit (c) standing order (d) maintenance direct (e) deduction of earnings order (f) deduction from benefits and (g) other means in the last 12 months; what proportion of total maintenance by paid by each method in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.
	The information requested on compliance rates can be obtained from table 10 of the March 2007 Child Support Agency Quarterly Summary Statistics. A copy of this is available in the House of Commons Library, or on the internet via the following link:
	www.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd1/child_support/csa_quarterly_mar07.asp
	Maintenance direct is a private arrangement between parents, and the agency assures compliance unless the arrangement breaks down.
	The proportion of total maintenance paid by each method of collection is provided in the attached table.
	I hope you find this helpful.
	
		
			  Proportion of total maintenance received in each month by method of collection: April 2006 to March 2007 
			  Percentage 
			   Deduction from Benefit  Deduction of Earnin g/ Orders  Direct Debit  Manual  Standing Order  Maintenance Direct  Other 
			  2006
			 April 1 27 11 11 18 32 0 
			 May 1 29 11 10 17 30 0 
			 June 1 30 11 10 17 31 0 
			 July 1 30 11 9 17 32 0 
			 August 1 29 11 10 17 32 0 
			 September 1 28 11 9 17 33 0 
			 October 1 29 11 9 17 32 1 
			 November 1 29 11 9 16 33 0 
			 December 1 26 11 9 17 35 1 
			 
			  2007
			 January 1 29 11 9 16 32 0 
			 February 1 29 12 9 15 33 0 
			 March 1 29 11 10 16 32 0 
			  Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest per cent. and may not sum to 100 as a result. 2. Proportions calculated based on the value of collections in each category. 3. The number of new Deduction from Earnings Order/Request (DEO/R) decreased in December 2006. This is due to a fix on the new computer system to suspend 8,500 ineffective Deduction from Earning Orders on cases where employers had informed the Agency that the non-resident parent on that case was no longer in their employment. Many of these had compliance restored through DEO/Rs in January 2007.

Children: Maintenance

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps are being taken to reduce the backlog of cases awaiting action by the Child Support Agency.

James Plaskitt: holding answer 29 June 2007
	The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Stephen Geraghty dated 11 July 2007:
	In reply to your recent parliamentary question about the Child Support Agency the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.
	You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps are being taken to reduce the backlog of cases awaiting action by the Child Support Agency.
	Processing applications commences on receipt and at any time the number of unprocessed applications the Agency holds is negligible. An application is described as cleared once the maintenance calculation has been made and payment schedule established or if work on it is completed for another reason (e.g. if it is withdrawn).
	Given the necessity of locating the non-resident parent, establishing parentage, obtaining income details etc. the Agency will always have a number of uncleared applications. The Agency's Operational Improvement Plan, announced last February, includes a commitment to reduce the number of uncleared applications and reduce the time taken to clear new intake.
	Significant progress has been made in this area. In March 2007 the volume of uncleared new scheme applications stood at 156,000. This is a fall of 65,000 since March 2006, equivalent to a 29 per cent. reduction and the percentage cleared within 12 weeks has increased from 53 per cent. to 61 per cent.
	The Agency is confident that it will be able to meet the new Secretary of State target to reduce uncleared new scheme applications to 140,000 and further increase clearance rates by the end of this operational year.
	I hope you find this answer helpful.

Children: Poverty

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the percentage of children living in poverty in  (a) the UK,  (b) the North East and  (c) Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland.

Anne McGuire: Specific information regarding low income for the UK is available in "Households Below Average Income 1994/95-2005/06 (Revised)". The report uses 60 per cent. of median income as the low income threshold. This threshold is the internationally recognised measure of poverty. The report is available in the Library.
	The percentage of children in the UK living below the low income threshold stood at 22 per cent. in 2005-06. In the North East region, during the three-year period up to and including 2005-06, 28 per cent. of children were living below the threshold.
	The figure for the North East region represents a fall in the total number of children living below the low income threshold of 18 per cent. in five years, which is broadly the same decrease as has been seen across the UK as a whole in the seven years since 1998-99.
	The information requested is not available below regional level.

Children: Poverty

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on progress towards meeting the 2010 target of halving child poverty.

Anne McGuire: Our child poverty targets are ambitious and rightly so; when this Government came to power, one in three children were living in poverty. Our labour market polices and the tax credit systems have helped to lift 600,000 children out of poverty.
	We know there is much more to do and are committed to meeting the targets. Earlier this year DWP published 'Working for Children', our strategy for parental employment, and this year's Budget included measures which will lift an additional 200,000 children out of poverty. DWP is currently working closely with HM Treasury, the Department for Families, Children and Schools, and other Government Departments on producing a child poverty delivery agreement as part of the 2007 comprehensive spending review.

Departments: Visits Abroad

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which foreign countries civil servants from his Department have visited over the last 12 months in order to study the design and impact of welfare reforms.

James Plaskitt: holding answer 9 July 2007
	 With a view to studying best practice in welfare reform, officials from my Department have visited a number of countries in the 12 months up to 30 June 2007, including Australia, New Zealand, Spain, Denmark and Germany.

Females: Disadvantaged

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps are being taken to help women from disadvantaged backgrounds enter jobs that will lift them out of poverty.

Anne McGuire: We know that women living in families with no one in work are more likely to be living in poverty. All of our labour market policies are gender-neutral although some by their nature help more women than men. As a result of this Government's policies nearly 2 million more women are now employed than there were in 1997.
	However we know there is still more to do. That is why we are piloting New Deal Plus for Lone Parents (NDPLP) in seven areas across the country, including Edmonton. As part of the package of help NDPLP provides, eligible people can claim an In-Work Credit of £40 (£60 in London) a week for up to a year when they move into work.
	It is also why we have introduced the Deprived Areas Fund, and are introducing the City Strategy which provides tailored support in some of the most deprived areas of the country to all people in those communities with the greatest barriers to returning to work.
	And with a lack of affordable child care being the greatest barrier to getting work for many women we are determined to continue to build on our policies, which, since 1997, have already resulted in a doubling of the number of child care places in England and, with extra help through the tax credit system, have significantly improved affordability. In addition, the London Childcare Affordability Project, which is jointly funded with the Greater London Authority, is testing the effectiveness of providing additional subsidies in the capital, where costs tend to be higher.

Housing Benefit

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the ranking is of local authority housing benefit services by comprehensive performance assessment rating for each year since its introduction.

James Plaskitt: The information requested has been placed in the Library.

Jobcentre Plus: Telephone Services

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the likely effect of the change to the use of the 0845 number for Jobcentre Plus on  (a) Jobcentre Plus local offices and  (b) their customers.

Anne McGuire: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. I have asked her to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Lesley Strathie, dated 11 July 2007:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to respond to your question asking what assessment he has made of the likely effect that the change to the use of the 0845 number for Jobcentre Plus will have on Jobcentre Plus local offices and their customers.
	Centralisation of benefit processing represents part of the modernisation of Jobcentre Plus services. It allows us to build centres of expertise which will enable us to improve standards of customer service, develop greater expertise in meeting customers' needs and move work around the country to meet changes in local demand so reducing delays.
	This way of working reduces benefit enquiry footfall in our local Jobcentre Plus offices, which means they can then concentrate their efforts in helping customers back to work.
	Many of our customers find it easier to access our services now there is a choice of using the telephone, the internet or face to face. Centralising our benefit claims systems means customers have the option to make benefit enquiries from the privacy of their own homes and their calls will be answered by a pool of benefits experts. Creating a Contact Centre network means that we are better able to cope with peaks in demand.
	We recognise that the telephone is not suitable for all customers and for this reason we continue to offer alternative means to contact us and to make benefit claims.
	I hope this is helpful.

Redundancies: Jobcentre Plus

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Jobcentre Plus staff have been made redundant since July 2006.

Anne McGuire: There have been no compulsory redundancies in Jobcentre Plus since July 2006.

CHILDREN, SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES

Building Schools for the Future Programme

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many schools were built or refurbished outside the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme in each year since the start of the BSF programme.

Jim Knight: Wave 1 of Building Schools for the Future (BSF) launched in 2004, and the first school procured through a local education partnership is due to open in September.
	The number of schools built or refurbished outside this programme is given in the table. The data come from a survey of local authorities to which over 95 per cent. responded. There may be a margin of error, and the data may include some of the 'quick win' projects in early BSF. A summary of the survey information is in the House of Commons Library.
	
		
			  Financial year  New schools built  Existing schools rebuilt  Existing schools refurbished( 1) 
			 2004-05 28 95 235 
			 2005-06 28 149 299 
			 2006-07 17 170 240 
			 2007-08 27 160 251 
			 (1 )More than 50 per cent. of floor area.

Child Minding: Training

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what representations he has received on the provision of training for child minders; and what guidance he provides to local authorities on the matter.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 3 July 2007
	The Department has not received any recent representations on the provision of training for child minders. Guidance to local authorities on the provision of such training is contained within statutory guidance on the Childcare Act 2006, Sure Start Children's Centres Practice Guidance, General Sure Start Grant allocation letters for 2006-08 and Transformation Fund guidance.

Class Sizes: Secondary Education

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the average class size was in  (a) comprehensive,  (b) grammar and  (c) independent schools in (i) the Ribble Valley and (ii) England in each of the last five years.

Jim Knight: holding answer 5 July 2007
	 The available information is shown in the table. Information on class sizes is not collected from independent schools.
	
		
			  Maintained secondary schools( 1) : Average class size( 2) —2003-07 position in January each year—Ribble Valley parliamentary constituency 
			   Ribble Valley parliamentary constituency  England 
			   Grammar schools( 3)  Other secondary schools  All maintained secondary schools  Grammar schools( 3)  Other secondary schools  All maintained secondary schools 
			 2003 20.3 22.8 22.3 20.7 21.9 21.9 
			 2004 20.9 23.2 22.9 20.4 21.9 21.8 
			 2005 20.3 23.2 22.8 20.4 21.7 21.7 
			 2006 19.3 23.0 22.4 20.2 21.5 21.5 
			 2007(4) 20.9 22.2 22.0 20.1 21.3 21.2 
			 (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) One teacher classes as taught during a single selected period on the day of the census. (3) School type as reported by schools. There is currently one grammar school in Ribble Valley parliamentary constituency. (4) Provisional data.  Source: School census

Classroom Assistants: Mathematics

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the answer of 11 June 2007,  Official Report, column 783W, on classroom assistants: mathematics, 
	(1)  what assessment his Department has made of the degree to which the scheme is meeting its objectives;
	(2)  when the scheme began; and how much funding his Department gave to the scheme in each financial year since it started.

Jim Knight: The Student Associate Scheme began in the academic year 2003-04, The following table details the budget for each academic year to date. The scheme has proved to be extremely successful with schools, higher education institutions and undergraduates. Its twin aims are to use the undergraduates as role models for school pupils and to encourage bright undergraduates into initial teacher training (ITT) by giving them a taste of life in front of a classroom. The Training and Development Agency for Schools, who administer the scheme, are about to carry out an assessment process which will try to ascertain how successful the scheme has been in terms of its twin aims. Data should be available in October 2007. However, previous limited research suggests that around 40 per cent. of participating undergraduates go on to ITT. In recognition of its success, the Treasury will announce on 5 July 2007 that the scheme will be extended and placements doubled over a three-year period.
	
		
			  Student Associate Scheme 
			   £ million 
			  Academic year  Budget 
			 2003-04 7.5 
			 2004-05 10.0 
			 2005-06 16.6 
			 2006-07 11.9 
			 2007-08 11.9 
			 Total 57.9

Departments: Manpower

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many employees of the former Department for Education and Skills moved  (a) within his Department and  (b) out of his Department on its creation.

Kevin Brennan: Following the creation of the Department for Children, Schools and Families:
	 (a) A total of 2,890 former Department for Education and Skills staff will be employed in my Department; and
	 (b) a total of 560 former Department for Education and Skills staff will move to the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills.
	This position may change as we work further through the details of establishing the new Departments.

Departments: Public Transport

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what estimate his Department has made of the number of its staff using public transport to commute.

Kevin Brennan: The Department was created on 28 June 2007 and does not hold up-to-date information on staff using public transport to commute. We plan to carry out a survey and develop a travel plan for the new Department later this year.

Drama: Curriculum

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what changes are planned to the number of Shakespeare plays that may be offered for study by schools at Key Stage 3 from 2009 onwards; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: It is the QCA's responsibility to set and maintain standards independently of Government. They have decided to make a choice of two Shakespeare plays, rather than three, available for the KS3 English test from 2009. They have based their decision on the historically low take-up by schools (less than 5 per cent.) of the third option. There will be no reduction in the standard or quality of the assessment of Shakespeare.

Education: Departmental Responsibilities

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families for which public service agreement targets his Department is now responsible which were not previously the responsibility of the former Department for Education and Skills.

Kevin Brennan: In addition to 12 PSA targets from Spending Review 2004 which my Department is directly responsible for, the Department for Children, Schools and Families will lead work across Government to improve outcomes for children—exact working arrangements and responsibilities will be decided in due course.

Howard Goodall: Correspondence

Janet Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what guidance has been given to the singing ambassador, Mr. Howard Goodall, on responding to correspondence from hon. Members.

Jim Knight: There has been huge interest in the national singing campaign and Howard Goodall, the singing ambassador, has received hundreds of messages from schools, organisations and individuals asking how they can become involved or providing details of the work they already do. Mr. Goodall is working as an unpaid and independent champion for singing and, as such, has received no guidance from Government on responding to correspondence,

Pre-school Education

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families which  (a) Steiner,  (b) Waldorf and  (c) Montessori pre-school institutions are registered in each local authority area; whether each institution has open enrolment; and whether each makes provision for those who rely entirely upon nursery grants to fund a place.

Beverley Hughes: The information requested is not collected centrally. Local authorities have a statutory duty to ensure sufficient free nursery education places for three and four-year-olds in their area. In discharging this duty, local authorities must have regard to the code of practice which states that they must ensure sufficient places are available for parents who only want to access the free entitlement.

Primary Education: Literacy

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the average reading age was of pupils aged  (a) five,  (b) six,  (c) seven,  (d) eight,  (e) nine,  (f) 10 and  (g) 11 in primary schools in each of the last five years.

Jim Knight: holding answer 5 July 2007
	The requested information is not available. The Department does not collect data on the reading ages of individual pupils.
	The Department does however; collect data on pupils' achievements in reading at the end of key stage 1 teacher assessments and at the end of the key stage 2 national curriculum tests. The target level at key stage 1 is level 2 in reading. At key stage 2 the target level in English is level 4. Key stage 2 pupils are assessed in both reading and writing to arrive at their overall level in the English test. In 2006, 84 per cent. of pupils achieved level 2 or above in reading and 83 per cent. of pupils achieved level 4 or above.
	The Government commissioned the independent review of the teaching of early reading, led by Jim Rose, to find ways to raise standards in reading even further. The review recommended that all children should follow a programme of systematic phonics teaching, This recommendation has been implemented in the revised primary framework for teaching literacy, which was published last year.

Primary and Secondary Education: Pupil Exclusions

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many primary school pupils were excluded in  (a) the Ribble Valley and  (b) England in the last five years;
	(2)  how many secondary school pupils were excluded from secondary schools in  (a) the Ribble Valley and  (b) England in the last five years.

Jim Knight: holding answer 5 July 2007
	The information requested is shown in the following tables.
	
		
			  Maintained primary and secondary schools( 1) : number and percentage of exclusions 2001-02 to 2005-06: Ribble Valley parliamentary constituency 
			   Maintained primary 
			   Ribble Valley  England( 2) 
			   Number of permanent exclusions  Percentage  of school population( 3)  Number of permanent exclusions  Percentage  of school population( 3)  Number of permanent exclusions  Percentage  of school population( 3)  Number of permanent exclusions  Percentage  of school population( 3) 
			 2001-02 (4)— (4)— (5)— (5)— 1,450 0.03 (5)— (5)— 
			 2002-03 (4)— (4)— (5)— (5)— 1,300 0.03 (5)— (5)— 
			 2003-04 0 (6)— 21 0.25 1,270 0.03 41,300 0.97 
			 004-05 0 (6)— 22 0.26 1,000 0.03 43,720 1.04 
			 2005-06 (4)— (4)— (5)— (5)— 970 0.02 (5)— (5)— 
		
	
	
		
			   Maintained secondary 
			   Ribble Valley  England( 2) 
			   Number of permanent exclusions  Percentage  of school population( 3)  Number of permanent exclusions  Percentage  of school population( 3)  Number of permanent exclusions  Percentage  of school population( 3)  Number of permanent exclusions  Percentage  of school population( 3) 
			 2001-02 16 0.9 (5)— (5)— 7,740 0.24 (5)— (5)— 
			 2002-03 20 0.23 (5)— (5)— 7,890 0.23 (5)— (5)— 
			 2003-04 21 0.24 806 9.21 8,320 0.25 288,040 8.66 
			 2004-05 21 0.24 779 8.83 8,070 0.24 329,680 9.94 
			 2005-06 14 0.16 804 9.13 7,990 0.24 343,840 10.40 
			 (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) National figures have been rounded to the nearest 10. (3) Number of exclusions expressed as a percentage of the number (headcount) of all pupils (excluding dually registered pupils). (4) Fewer than three, or a rate based on fewer than three. (5) Not available. (6) Not applicable.  Source: School census

Pupils: Basic Skills

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps his Department is taking to improve the standard of basic skills of school leavers.

Jim Knight: The percentage of 16-year-olds achieving five A*-C GCSE grades or equivalent has risen from 45.1 per cent. in 1997 to 58.1 per cent. In 2006.
	Teaching literacy and maths at primary school is the essential foundation for every child's learning. Last year we revised the primary framework for literacy and mathematics for the first time since the national literacy and numeracy strategies were introduced. The revised document embeds best practice in systematic phonics teaching, as recommended by the Rose review, and raises expectations for pupils' progress. For example they are expected to learn their times tables a year earlier.
	We have provided schools with significant funding for personalised learning: reaching £900 million this year. This can be used to support small group and one-to-one tuition for those who have fallen behind national expectations in English and maths. The Budget announced further funding sufficient to provide an average of 10 hours of one-to-one tuition in schools for over 300,000 under-attaining pupils a year in both English and mathematics by 2010-11. We have provided schools with guidance and support on how to help pupils who are at risk of falling behind in English and maths through programmes such as Study Plus, which targets pupils who are struggling with English and maths at Key Stage 4 (ages 14 to 16). Changes to the curriculum at KS3 will also, over time, support higher standards of literacy and numeracy.
	We know that demonstrating basic competence and the ability to apply practically what they learn in English, maths and ICT is vital to young people's future employability. Competence in functional skills in these areas will be tested as an important part of the new diplomas for 14 to 19-year-olds which are being piloted from September 2008 and will be available nationally from 2013. For students embarking on GCSEs in English, maths and ICT from September 2010, it will also be necessary to demonstrate the appropriate level of functional skills in order to obtain a pass at grades A* to G*. Pilots of functional skills will be taking place in a range of schools and colleges across England from this September, supported by a programme of professional development for teachers to support the necessary changes in teaching and learning.

Pupils: Per Capita Costs

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much funding per head was provided to school children up to 18 years of age in  (a) Shrewsbury and Atcham constituency and  (b) Telford constituency in (i) 2004, (ii) 2005 and (iii) 2006.

Jim Knight: The requested information is allocated to local authorities and not at constituency level. The Shrewsbury constituency is part of Shropshire LA, and the Telford constituency is part of Telford and Wrekin LA. The revenue funding figures per pupil aged three to 19 for Shropshire LA and Telford and Wrekin LA for years 2003-04 to 2005-06 are as follows:
	
		
			   Shropshire  Telford and Wrekin 
			 2003-04 3,710 3,790 
			 2004-05 3,850 3,910 
			 2005-06 4,040 4,120 
			  Notes: 1. Price base: real terms at 2005-06 prices, based on GDP deflators as at 27 September 2006. 2. Figures reflect relevant sub-blocks of Education Formula Spending (EFS) settlements and include the pensions transfer to EFS and the Learning and Skills Council. 3. Total funding also includes all revenue grants in DCSF Department Expenditure Limits relevant to pupils aged three to 19 and exclude Education Maintenance Allowances (EMAs) and grants not allocated at LEA level. 4. The pupil numbers used to convert £ million figures to £ per pupil are those underlying the EFS settlement calculations. 5. Rounding: figures are rounded to the nearest £10. 6. Status: some of the grant allocations have not been finalised. If these do change, the effect on the funding is expected to be minimal.

Pupils: Per Capita Costs

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what amount in  (a) percentage and  (b) real terms the Government have spent on (i) primary and (ii) secondary schools from its education budget in the last five years.

Jim Knight: holding answer 11 July 2007
	The requested figures are in the following table. These are extracted from table 12.3 of the 2007 Department for Education and Skills departmental report, a link to which follows:
	http://www.dfes.gov.uk/publications/deptreport2007/
	
		
			  Education expenditure( 1)  by central and local government( 2)  by sector in real terms( 3)  in England 2002-03 to 2006-07 
			  £ million 
			  Schools( 4)  2002-03 outturn  2003-04 outturn  2004-05 outturn  2005-06 provisional outturn  2006 -07 estimated outturn 
			 Primary(5) 10,188 10,785 10,911 11,350 11,640 
			 Percentage of education expenditure 22.3 21.6 21.0 20.6 20.7 
			   
			 Secondary 12,944 14.295 14,869 15,454 15,822 
			 Percentage of education expenditure 28.3 28.6 28.6 28.0 28.2 
			   
			 Total education expenditure (real terms) 45,697 49,992 51,998 55,168 56,121 
			 (1) Figures within departmental expenditure limits (DEL), Excludes DfES administration costs and expenditure on other areas than education, for instance on children and families and on skills. (2) The recurrent local authority figures in this table are drawn from Table 8.4 of the 2007 departmental report; the footnotes to that table set out the underlying data sources. Central Government figures are drawn from the Combined Online Information System (COINS). (3) All figures have been converted to 2005-06 price levels using the 28 March 2007 gross domestic product (GDP) deflators. (4) Figures from 2003-04 onwards reflect the transfer of responsibility from the Department to LEAs of costs relating to teachers' pensions, (5) Primary figures exclude expenditure on under fives.

Pupils: Qualifications

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 were entered for a qualification provided by the awarding body CACHE in the last year for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 were entered for a CACHE Level 2 Certificate in Child Care and Education in the last year for which figures are available.

Jim Knight: This information is not available.

Pupils: Transport

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  whether parents will need to demonstrate that  (a) they are registered disabled and  (b) that they have been assessed for a certain level of community care services for home to school transport to be provided to their children, with reference to sections 87 and 88 of his Department's guidance on home to school travel and transport;
	(2)  whether home to school transport will be provided to children if their parent's disability varies in severity from day to day, with reference to sections 87 and 88 of his Department's guidance on home to school travel and transport;
	(3)  whether home to school transport will be provided to children in circumstances where they have parents with disabilities who are in receipt of support from community care services, with reference to sections 87 and 88 of his Department's guidance on home to school travel and transport.

Jim Knight: holding answer 9 July 2007
	It is for the local authorities to ensure that their policies and practice take account of the provisions of disability discrimination legislation, when determining entitlement to free home to school transport.

Schools: Admissions

Robert Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many surplus places there were in  (a) primary schools and  (b) secondary schools in each local education authority on 1 January 2007, broken down by school type; and how many schools of each type there were in each authority.

Jim Knight: The number of surplus places in primary and secondary schools in each local authority at January 2006 is contained in the following tables which have been placed in the House Libraries.
	The number of surplus places in primary and secondary schools at January 2007, broken down by school type, is currently being collected from local authorities and will be published in January 2008; this is the first year that the Department has collected surplus places data by school type. Surplus places data are published on Teachernet at:
	http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/management/fallingschoolrolls/context/stats/

Schools: Ethnic Groups

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps he is taking to tackle the incidence of school populations dominated by one ethnic type in English schools; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: Where communities are ethnically diverse their schools should aspire to reflect that diversity. However, it is unlawful for schools to take account of a child's ethnic background when allocating places. What is important is that all parents are able to exercise their fundamental right to decide what school they would like their child to attend confident that they will not be discriminated against because of their background. The new school admissions code, which came into force on 28 February 2007, has established a framework to ensure that every child has an equal opportunity to attend a good school. In addition, the governing bodies of maintained schools in England have a duty under section 38 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 to promote community cohesion and Ofsted will report on the discharge of this duty.

Schools: Finance

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to his predecessor's answer of 27 June 2007,  Official Report, column 331, which pupils in North Oxfordshire have received £1,000 extra funding; and how many pupils have received such funding.

Jim Knight: The Department for Children, Schools and Families allocates education funding to local authorities and not at constituency level, The requested information is for Oxfordshire local authority. Between 1997-98 and 2005-06 the revenue funding from Government for nursery, primary and secondary school pupils in Oxfordshire local authority rose by £1,030 (or 34 per cent.) in real terms. In addition, following the introduction of the Dedicated School Grant in 2006-07, the per pupil revenue funding in Oxfordshire rose by 6.8 per cent. in 2006-07 and 6.4 per cent. in 2007-08.

Schools: Literacy

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what progress has been made on the review of the national literacy strategy; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what measures his Department is taking to improve the standard of literacy in schools.

Jim Knight: We commissioned the Independent Review of the Teaching of Early Reading—carried out by Jim Rose—to inform our efforts to improve standards of literacy in primary schools.
	We have revised the primary framework for literacy and mathematics for the first time since the national literacy strategy was introduced in 1998, putting phonics at the heart of the teaching of reading. The renewed framework and associated training are the key vehicle for implementing Jim Rose's recommendations.
	To provide further support to teachers we have produced a full, high quality, phonics teaching programme—'Letters and Sounds'—which was published on 30 April.
	We are also providing support for children who struggle to learn to read through the Every Child a Reader programme. This three-year, £10 million pilot, funded in partnership with the KPMG Foundation and other charitable and corporate funders, is helping 5,000 six-year-olds with significant literacy difficulties to learn to read. ECAR will be rolled out nationally from 2008-09, benefiting over 30,000 children a year by 2010-11.
	Our reforms to the secondary curriculum are designed to support the continued development of functional skills in English, maths and ICT. The curriculum changes proposed by QCA would also create flexibility for teachers to tailor the curriculum to provide extra support for children who are at risk of falling behind in English or maths.
	In addition to developing literacy skills, we are also taking steps to encourage a broader appreciation of English; for example through our Boys into Books programme, which has made a selection of books likely to appeal to boys available to all secondary schools. We have also worked with the Globe Theatre to develop a podcast to help children to study Much Ado About Nothing.

Schools: Oxfordshire

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to his predecessor's answer of 27 June 2007,  Official Report, column 331, 
	(1)  what the locations are of the six new schools in North Oxfordshire;
	(2)  what the names are of the 16 schools refurbished in North Oxfordshire;
	(3)  which of the 549 classrooms refurbished are in North Oxfordshire.

Jim Knight: The data collected are for Oxfordshire county council, rather than North Oxfordshire, and give school names rather than locations. A summary of the information is available in the House Library.
	The six new schools built are:
	
		
			  Year opened  School name 
			 1998-99 The Ace centre Nursery School 
			 1999-2000 Ladygrove Park Primary School 
			 2000-01 Bure Park Primary School 
			 2002-03 St. John the Evangelist CofE Primary School 
			 2003-04 Hanwell Fields Community School 
			 2003-04 Madley Brook Community Primary School 
		
	
	The 16 schools referred to, which are existing schools that have been rebuilt rather than refurbished, are:
	
		
			  Year opened  School name 
			 1997-88 Wallingford School 
			 1998-99 Grandpont Nursery School 
			 1999-2000 Hanborough Manor CofE School 
			 1999-2000 Watlington Primary School 
			 2002-03 Bishopswood School 
			 2002-03 Chilton Count Primary School 
			 2002-03 Kingfisher School 
			 2002-03 Sandhills Community Primary School 
			 2002-03 Shenington Church of England Primary School 
			 2003-04 Springfield School 
			 2003-04 SS Philip and James' Church of England Aided Primary School Oxford 
			 2003-04 Wantage Church of England Primary School 
			 2005-06 Fritwell Church of England Primary School 
			 2006-07 Elms Road Nursery School and Daycare 
			 2006-07 Nettlebed Community School 
			 2006-07 St. Gregory the Great VA Catholic Secondary School 
		
	
	A further 20 schools have had 50 per cent. or more of their floor area refurbished:
	
		
			  Year completed  School name 
			 2001-02 Bardwell School 
			 2001-02 Slade Nursery School 
			 2001-02 Thameside Primary School 
			 2002-03 Bayards Hill Primary School 
			 2002-03 SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School 
			 2002-03 Windmill Primary School 
			 2003-04 Badgemore Community School 
			 2003-04 Caldecott Primary School 
			 2003-04 Cherwell School (The) 
			 2003-04 The John Henry Newman CE (A) Primary School 
			 2003-04 Whitchurch Primary School 
			 2004-05 Leafield Church of England (Controlled) Primary School 
			 2004-05 Oxfordshire Pupil Referral Unit and Integration Service 
			 2005-06 Bartlemas Nursery School 
			 2005-06 Benson Church of England Primary School 
			 2005-06 Orchard Meadow Primary School 
			 2005-06 South Stoke Primary School 
			 2005-06 Uffington Church of England Primary School 
			 2006-07 Mabel Prichard School 
			 2006-07 Marsh Baldon Church of England Controlled School

Secondary Education: Curriculum

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will make a statement on the implementation of his Department's proposals for reform of the 14-to-19 curriculum.

Jim Knight: The Department has made substantial progress in delivering the objectives published in December 2005 in the 14-19 Implementation Plan. We have met all major milestones to date as set out in chapter 5 of the implementation plan and are working closely with our key partners and are on track with the activities for 2007 and beyond.
	14-19 reform continues to be a key priority of the Department for Children, Schools and Families.
	I refer the hon. Member to the replies given to the hon. Member for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton (Mr. Gibb) earlier this year, 6 February 2007,  Official Report, column 831W, and 26 February 2007,  Official Report, column 1017W.

Specialised Diplomas

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what plans he has to change the functional skills requirement of the level 2 specialised diploma.

Jim Knight: There are no plans to change the functional skills requirement of the level 2 diploma.

Specialised Diplomas: Take-Up

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment he has made of the impact of the functional skills requirement on the potential uptake of the specialised diploma; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: We do not expect any impact on potential diploma take up because of the functional skills requirement. Functional skills will be embedded in all learning routes, such as apprenticeships and GCSEs, as well as diplomas. This means that young people will need to demonstrate competence in functional skills wherever they work or study.

Teachers: Warrington

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many  (a) teachers and  (b) teaching assistants were employed in Warrington (i) in 1997 and (ii) at the last date for which figures are available, broken down into primary and secondary schools.

Jim Knight: holding answer 28 June 2007
	Warrington local authority was created as a separate local authority with responsibilities for education on 1 April 1998. Prior to this date figures for Warrington were included with those for the former Cheshire local authority area and are not available separately.
	The following table provides the full-time equivalent number of regular teachers and teaching assistants employed in local authority maintained nursery/primary and secondary schools in Warrington local authority area in January 1999 and 2006.
	
		
			  Full-time equivalent regular teachers and teaching assistants in local authority maintained nursery/primary and secondary schools in Warrington local authority: January 1999 and 2006 
			   Regular teachers  Teaching assistants 
			   Nursery/primary  Secondary  Nursery/primary  Secondary 
			 1999 700 780 190 20 
			 2006 880 950 430 130 
			  Note: Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.  Source: DfES annual survey of teachers in service and teacher vacancies, 618g (regular teachers) and Annual School Census (teaching assistants).

Youth Services

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families when he expects the minutes of the meeting of the Third Sector Forum for Children and Young People on 23 April to be published; and what the reason is for the time taken to publish them.

Kevin Brennan: The minutes from the latest meeting of the DfES Third Sector Forum for Children and Young People's Services will be made public shortly. They will be found on the Every Child Matters web site through the Strategy and Governance section on the Third Sector Forum page. The meeting was postponed from 23 April to 8 May and administrative resources have been focused on the publication on 25 June of the DfES Third Sector Strategy and Action Plan.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Departments: Disciplinary Proceedings

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many people in his Department have been  (a) disciplined and  (b) dismissed for (i) inappropriate use of the internet while at work and (ii) using work telephones to access premium rate telephone numbers in the last 12 months.

Margaret Hodge: No employees have been disciplined or dismissed in the last 12 months for inappropriate use of the internet or for using work telephones to access premium rate telephone numbers.
	As part of the Department's internet policy, we monitor all internet usage and block inappropriate sites. We also block all premium rate phone numbers from our system.

Departments: Official Visits

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much was spent on overnight accommodation by civil servants within his Department's areas of responsibilities in the last 12 months.

Margaret Hodge: Expenditure on overnight accommodation by the Department's civil servants is not recorded separately in the Department's accounting system. It could be obtained by retrieving and manually analysing a large number of travel and incidental expense claims only at disproportionate cost.

Departments: Opinion Leader Research

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the value is of  (a) all payments by his Department to Opinion Leader Research since 1997 and  (b) the payment to Opinion Leader Research for "It's the taking part that counts."

Gerry Sutcliffe: There have been no payments made by my Department to Opinion Leader Research since 1997. "It's the taking part that counts" was a report commissioned by Camelot; therefore no payments were made to Opinion Leader Research by my Department.

Departments: Sick Leave

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many staff in his Department have taken  (a) five or more,  (b) four,  (c) three and  (d) two periods of sick leave of less than five days in the last 12 months.

Margaret Hodge: In the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, staff have taken sick leave as follows during the period from 1 April 2006 to 31 March 2007.
	
		
			   Number of staff  Percentage of total staff 
			 Staff who have taken five or more periods of sick leave of less than five days 17 3.24 
			 Staff who have taken four periods of sick leave of less than five days 10 1.90 
			 Staff who have taken three periods of sick leave of less than five days 30 5.72 
			 Staff who have taken two periods of sick leave of less than five days 49 9.35

Gambling: Legislation

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate his Department has made of the time period necessary for the gambling industry to implement fully the regulations to be made under section 240 of the Gambling Act 2005.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The overwhelming majority of gaming machines currently operating under Part III of the Gaming Act 1968 will not require significant alteration when the Gambling Act comes fully in to force on 1 September. Where adjustments are necessary, the Department has invited the gambling industry to provide estimates of the time period necessary to implement the regulations under section 240 of the Act. The Department has received several responses, which will be carefully considered as the regulations are finalised in the coming weeks.

Licensing Laws: Music

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps his Department plans to take to ensure that the regulations contained within the Licensing Act 2003 lead to a growth in live music.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The DCMS Simplification Plan sets out where we think there may be scope to adjust the licensing regulations to remove any unnecessary burdens on those putting on licensable activities, including live music. In addition, the Live Music Forum published its report on 4 July 2007, and made a number of recommendations relating to the Licensing Act 2003, which we will consider carefully before responding formally.
	However, I am pleased that the evidence so far, including the Forum's report, does not suggest the new licensing regulations have had a widespread negative impact on live music, and shows a number of benefits have been delivered. Our aim is to ensure the new licensing legislation will help live music continue to thrive.
	The DCMS Simplification Plan and Live Music Forum report are available in the Libraries of the House, and on the DCMS website:
	www.culture.gov.uk

Museums and Galleries: Public Libraries

Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on the impact on the standards and accessibility of museums and libraries of changes to local government structure.

Margaret Hodge: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State looks forward to discussions on future unitary structures at the appropriate Ministerial Committee of the Cabinet.

Obesity: Children

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what progress his Department has made towards its public service agreement target to halt the year-on-year rise in obesity among children under 11 by 2010.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Given the complexity of this public health challenge, DCMS shares this target with the Department of Health and with the Department for Children, Schools and Families.
	The three Departments are working together, through joint cross-departmental programme management arrangements, on six fronts: to change population attitudes towards eating and activity; helping children to be active and eat healthily; supporting targeted local-level obesity interventions in children; raising awareness of the importance of healthy weight to children and parents; working with local partners on delivery; and developing the knowledge base.
	My Department's contribution to this programme of work is chiefly through making children and families more physically active via children's play, school sport and community sport; improving children's diet via our work with Ofcom on restricting promotion and advertising to children of foods high in fat, salt and sugar; and our work with the hospitality sector to promote healthier food choices.
	Through the Big Lottery Fund £155 million Play initiative local authorities are able to develop free open access play provision in areas of greatest need in England.
	And on broadcast food promotion we have worked with Ofcom to produce new rules that ban the advertising of high fat, salt and sugar foods in and around all children's programming; on dedicated children's channels; and in programmes of particular appeal to children under the age of 16. Ofcom have also introduced new rules on the content of advertisements targeted at primary school children. These rules ban the use of celebrities and characters licensed from third-parties (such as cartoons), promotional claims (such as free gifts) and health or nutrition claims. Ofcom announced the new rules in February 2007.
	The National School Sport Strategy, jointly implemented by DCMS and DCSF, is a key component of a "whole school" programme of addressing obesity. The 2005-06 school sport survey found that overall, 80 per cent. of pupils participate in at least two hours of high quality PE and school sport a week. This exceeded the target of 75 per cent. for 2006 and demonstrates a considerable increase from the estimated 25 per cent. in 2002. This target will rise to 85 per cent. by 2008. By 2010 the ambition is to offer all children at least four hours of sport a week.
	We are also working with school sports partnerships to increase participation in physical activity by overweight and obese children.

Tourism

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many  (a) overseas and  (b) domestic tourists visited England in each year since 1997.

Margaret Hodge: The following tables show the number of visits to England by  (a) overseas residents and  (b) UK residents where this included an overnight stay.
	
		
			  Inbound visits to England 
			   Visits  (million) 
			 1997 19.6 
			 1998 19.9 
			 1999 21.5 
			 2000 21.5 
			 2001 19.3 
			 2002 20.5 
			 2003 21.1 
			 2004 23.6 
			 2005 25.3 
			 2006 (provisional) 27.0 
			  Source: International Passenger Survey (ONS) 
		
	
	
		
			  Domestic overnight trips in England 
			   Visits (million) 
			 1997 125.6 
			 1998 115.4 
			 1999 137.7 
			 2000 140.4 
			 2001 131.9 
			 2002 134.9 
			 2003 121.3 
			 2004 101.4 
			 2005 111.2 
			 2006 101.8 
			  Source:  UK Tourism Survey (National Tourist Boards)(1) 
		
	
	In addition, a substantial number of day visits are made to, or within, England. The last Leisure Visits Survey in 2005 recorded a total of 870 million tourism day visits to destinations in England by English residents. It is not possible to provide a time series for this information as the surveys are run intermittently.
	(1)( )The methodology for the UKTS changed in 2005 meaning that comparisons with previous years should be treated with caution. This change occurred due to concerns with the quality of 2004 data, which are thought to be an under-representation of the true position. There was also a change in survey methodology in 2000, though figures for 1997-99 have been reworked to allow comparisons with the later data.

Tourism: Marketing

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the total expenditure from the public purse was on promoting England as a tourist destination  (a) domestically and  (b) internationally in each year since 1997.

Margaret Hodge: VisitBritain has been responsible for the marketing of England as a tourist destination since April 2003, and has been advised in this by the England Marketing Advisory Board. Until the beginning of 2005-06, VisitBritain marketed England only within Britain. Under the new Strategy agreed by the Department and the devolved Administrations of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland in March 2005, VisitBritain now additionally markets England as a tourist destination in France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the Republic of Ireland.
	
		
			  VisitBritain's spending on marketing England since 2003 
			£ million 
			   Marketing within Britain  International marketing 
			 2003-04 12.251 0 
			 2004-05 13.163 0 
			 2005-06 13.062 1.228 
			 2006-07 12.458 1.295 
		
	
	Before 2003, England was marketed internationally by the British Tourist Authority as part of its remit to promote and market the whole of Britain. The expenditure incurred cannot be broken down by the constituent nations of Britain.
	These figures do not include public spending by the Regional Development Agencies, the Regional Tourist Boards, and other bodies, seeking to promote particular areas of England in domestic and international markets.

Tourism: Marketing

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much of VisitBritain's overseas marketing budget was used to promote tourism to  (a) England,  (b) Scotland,  (c) Wales and  (d) Northern Ireland in each year since 2003.

Margaret Hodge: VisitBritain does not disaggregate its spending on marketing Britain by country or territory. Its marketing campaigns are based around market sectors or themes, such as heritage or sport, and usually involve the promotion of many locations throughout Britain.
	However, VisitBritain has marketed England in Germany, France, the Netherlands, and the Republic of Ireland since 2005, with the agreement of the devolved Administrations of Scotland and Wales. Spending for that purpose, from VisitBritain's budget was as follows:
	2005-06: £1.2 million;
	2006-07: £1.3 million.
	VisitBritain's marketing budget does not cover Northern Ireland, for which Tourism Ireland is responsible.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Amphetamines: Prosecutions

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been prosecuted for manufacturing methylamphetamine in the past five years; and how many such cases involved the use of over-the-counter medicines for this purpose.

Vernon Coaker: Prior to 18 January 2007, methylamphetamine production formed part of the offence "Production or being concerned in the production of a controlled drug: Amphetamine" under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. It was not possible to separately identify the production of methylamphetamine or its constituent parts from other types of amphetamine within this offence, nor was it possible to identify which cases involved the use of over-the-counter medicines for this purpose.
	Following methylamphetamine's reclassification from a class B drug to a class A drug, "Production of or being concerned in the production of a controlled drug: Methamphetamine (Crystal Meth)" became a new offence under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (Amendment) Order 2006, section 4(2).
	Information on the number of persons proceeded against at magistrates court and found guilty at all courts under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 sec. 4(2) [Class 'B' Drug] for the offence of "Production or being concerned in the production of a controlled drug: Amphetamine, in England and Wales for the years 2001 to 2005" can be found in the following table. Court proceedings data for 2006 will be available in the autumn of 2007.
	
		
			  Number of persons proceeded against at magistrates court and found guilty at all courts under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 sec. 4(2) [Class 'B' Drug] , f or the offence of production or being concerned in the production of a controlled drug: Amphetamine, in England and Wales for the years 2001 - 05( 1,)( )( 2,)( )( 3) 
			   Number 
			  Prosecuted  
			 2001 8 
			 2002 12 
			 2003 10 
			 2004 5 
			 2005 13 
			   
			  Found guilty  
			 2001 4 
			 2002 3 
			 2003 10 
			 2004 7 
			 2005 7 
			 (1) These data are on the principal offence basis. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3) Prior to 18 January 2007 the production of Methamphetamine was not a separate offence. The following is the new Act and offence description for Methylamphetamine offences: The Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 Production of or being concerned in the production of [Class 'A' Drug] Methylamphetamine (Crystal Meths) s.4(2) Production of or being concerned in the production of a controlled drug Methylamphetamine (Crystal Meth).  Source: Office for Criminal Justice Reform—Ministry of Justice

Asylum

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department at which point of the asylum process her Department considers a decision on an asylum claim to be final.

Liam Byrne: holding answer 9 July 2007
	A decision on an asylum claim is final when it has been served. All asylum decisions can be reviewed by the courts on appeal or judicial review.

Asylum

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether her Department considers an individual who has made a fresh asylum claim to be an asylum seeker with an active case.

Liam Byrne: holding answer 9 July 2007
	Where an individual's original asylum claim has been refused, and they provide the Secretary of State with further submissions on that claim, there are four possible outcomes. The Border and Immigration Agency may:
	grant asylum;
	recognise there is a fresh claim, against which refusal there is a right of appeal;
	recognise there is a fresh claim, but certify that claim, the result of which is no right of appeal; or
	refuse to accept the submissions as a fresh claim and reject as further representations, against which there is no right of appeal.
	Nobody will be removed before their further submissions have been categorised into one of the above outcomes. To this extent, their case is still 'active'. A failed asylum seeker does not, however, regain asylum seeker 'status' (e.g. for the purposes of support) just because they have put in further submissions. They remain a failed asylum seeker until such time as the Border and Immigration Agency, or the courts, find their further submissions to be significant.

Asylum: Assisted Voluntary Return Schemes

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her projection is of the numbers who will take assisted voluntary return packages to their home country in  (a) 2007,  (b) 2008 and  (c) 2009.

Liam Byrne: Projected numbers of those who will take assisted voluntary return packages to their home county in  (a) 2007,  (b) 2008 and  (c) 2009 are not available.

Asylum: Assisted Voluntary Return Schemes

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people returned to their home country under the assisted voluntary return system in  (a) 2006,  (b) 2005 and  (c) 2004.

Liam Byrne: Information on removals is published annually. Copies of these publications are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics website at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html.

Asylum: Finance

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what payments have been made to each local authority from the  (a) Challenge Fund for Refugees and  (b) Purposeful Activities for Asylum Seekers Fund in each year since these funds were established.

Liam Byrne: The information is shown in the following tables.
	
		
			  Payments made to local authorities from the challenge fund 
			  £ 
			  Local authority  2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07 
			 Manchester City Council 73,163.00 69,079.00 — 77,650.00 — — 
			 Kent County Council — 13,984.00 14,404.00 — — — 
			 North Tyneside Council — 26,796.00 — — — — 
			 Newcastle City Council — — 31,800.00 — — — 
			 Liverpool City Council — — 64,714.00 — — — 
			 Cardiff City Council — — 51,272.00 48,068.00 — — 
			 Leicestershire City Council — — — 21,500.00 36,158.00 — 
			 Northamptonshire County Council — — — 28,000.00 — — 
			 Stoke on Trent City Council — — — 34,050.00 — — 
			 Portsmouth City Council — — — — 33,095.00 — 
			 Middlesbrough Council — — — — — 12,320.00 
			 London Borough of Brent — — — — — 39,500.00 
			 Total 73,163.00 109,859.00 162,190.00 209,268.00 69,253.00 51,820.00 
		
	
	
		
			  Payments made to local authorities from the purposeful activities for asylum seekers fund 
			  £ 
			  Local authority  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07 
			 Leicestershire County Council 2,440.00 2,850.00 27,550.00 — — 
			 Nottingham City Council 3,537.00 7,207.00 35,000.00 — — 
			  7,384.00 — — — — 
			 London Borough of Islington 3,582.00 3,475.00 — — — 
			  2,778.00 — — — — 
			 London Borough of Barking and Dagenham 5,265.00 5,260.00 — — — 
			 London Borough of Greenwich 27,185.00 — — — — 
			 London Borough of Lewisham 20,000.00 — — — — 
			 London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham 5,380.00 — — — — 
			 London Borough of Kensington and Chelsea 4,009.00 12,636.40 — — — 
			 Middlesbrough Council 3,500.00 — — — — 
			 Newcastle City Council 3,300.00 24,756.00 24,880.00 — — 
			 South Tyneside Council 1,350.00 — — — — 
			 Gateshead Council 12,000.00 — — — — 
			 Manchester City Council 11,350.00 10,000.00 — — — 
			 Stoke on Trent City Council 4,000.00 — — 8,189.80 — 
			 Rotherham Borough Council 7,000.00 — 7,260.00 — — 
			 Leeds City Council 21,582.00 — — — — 
			 Wakefield Council 14,534.00 — — — — 
			 West Berkshire Council — 8,500.00 — — — 
			 Newport City Council — 6,230.00 — — — 
			 Birmingham City Council — 575.00 — — — 
			 Solihull Council — 968.00 — — — 
			 Sheffield City Council — 36,854.00 — — — 
			 Coventry City Council — — 19,582.00 — — 
			 North Tyneside Council — — — 10,440.00 — 
			  — — — 9,590.00 — 
			 Cambridgeshire County Council — — — — 28,900.00 
			 Total 160,176.00 119,311.40 114,272.00 28,219.80 28,900.00

Community Support Officers

James Duddridge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police community support officers in  (a) Southend,  (b) Essex and  (c) England have been transferred from the original neighbourhood team to which they were recruited (i) to another neighbourhood team within their respective area and (ii) to a team outside their respective area.

Tony McNulty: This information is not centrally collected. The deployment of police community support officers is an operational matter for the Chief Constable.

Community Support Officers: Police

James Duddridge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individuals who were recruited as police community support officers in  (a) Southend,  (b) Essex and  (c) England have subsequently taken up positions as police officers, broken down by the period in which they were originally recruited.

Tony McNulty: The requested information is not collected centrally as part of the police personnel statistics series.

Community Support Officers: Recruitment

James Duddridge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police community support officers were recruited in  (a) Southend,  (b) Essex and  (c) England during the period (i) January to June 2006, (ii) July to December 2006 and (iii) January to June 2007; and how many officers recruited during each period are still in post.

Tony McNulty: The requested data on police community support officer recruits are not available. Data for 2006-07 will be made available after the publication of the Home Office Statistical Bulletin "Police Service Strength, England and Wales, 31 March 2007", due for release on 26 July 2007.
	Information relating to the number of police community support officer recruits still in post is not collected centrally as part of the police personnel statistics series.

Departments: Council of Europe Co-operation Group to Combat Drug Abuse

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what meetings Ministers from her Department have had with the Pompidou Group of the Council of Europe in the last 12 months; and what matters were discussed.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 9 July 2007
	Home Office Ministers have had no meetings with the Pompidou Group of the Council of Europe in the last 12 months. There was a Ministerial meeting of the Group on 27-28 November 2006 which I was unable to attend, but at which the United Kingdom was represented by our Ambassador to the Council of Europe and a Home Office official. The meeting endorsed a programme of work for experts in the field for the period 2007-10 in furtherance of the Group's core mission of contributing to the development of multidisciplinary, innovative, effective and evidence-based drug policies in Council of Europe member states, in particular in the areas of prevention, treatment, criminal justice, research, ethics and co-operation between operational staff at airports.

Departments: Private Finance Initiative

Jacqui Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the total cost is of all private finance initiative projects for which her Department has responsibility completed since 1997; and what the projected cost is of such projects commissioned or under way.

Liam Byrne: The cost of completed projects is £129.80 million. The cost of projects under way is projected to be £2,058.24 million including costs associated with the Home Office's headquarters building where the construction phase of the project was completed in 2005.
	These figures are the sum of the unitary charge payments made over the course of the projects, where any future payments are projections conditional on the performance of the private sector contractor involved.
	The payments cover more than just the repayment of the capital value of the projects and include costs of service provision, capital repayments and inflation.
	Further details of the individual PFI projects can be found at:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/documents/public_private_partnerships/ppp_pfi_stats.cfm

Departments: Public Transport

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what incentives she has considered to encourage staff in her Department to use public transport.

Liam Byrne: It is Home Office policy to avoid staff travel wherever possible by the use of systems such as videoconferencing or teleconferencing or by encouraging home working. However where travel is necessary such as for commuting staff are encouraged to take up interest-free loans for season tickets. The use of public transport for duty travel is encouraged by restricting on site car parking, and making use of travel websites for information services and to simplify ticketing arrangements. Staff are also informed about local transport initiatives and promotions. Where the location or nature of the work makes the use of public transport impractical for staff, car sharing is encouraged.

Driving Under Influence: Screening

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether roadside drug-screening devices will be available for use by police forces within the next three years.

Vernon Coaker: We hope to publish the Guide to Type Approval of Drug Testing Devices by September 2007. The availability of devices will then depend largely on how quickly manufacturers prepare devices in accordance with the specification given and submit them for approval, how they perform in the necessary operational and laboratory tests and how soon after approval the manufacturers make them commercially available.

Driving Under Influence: Screening

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her estimate is of the timescale for type-approval of roadside drug-screening devices.

Vernon Coaker: Following detailed and extensive work on the preparation of a suitable device specification, we hope to publish a Guide to the Type Approval of Drug Screening Devices by September 2007. It will then be for manufacturers to prepare devices in accordance with that specification and submit them for type approval. Progress will then depend on how well the devices perform in the necessary operational and laboratory tests and how quickly and appropriately manufacturers respond to any problems or queries that arise, if there are no difficulties, a typical timescale for the type approval process might be around six months.

Driving Under Influence: Screening

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made in type-approving roadside drug-screening devices.

Vernon Coaker: The Forensic Science Service and Home Office Scientific Development Branch, with outside experts, have been developing a specification for a device. Following extensive consultation, we hope to publish a Guide to the Type Approval of Drug Screening devices by September 2007. It will then be for manufacturers to prepare devices in accordance with the specification and submit them to the type approval process.

Extradition

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times an European arrest warrant has been used to extradite foreign nationals back to the United Kingdom for prosecution.

Meg Hillier: Since 1 January 2004 when the European arrest warrant procedure entered into force in the United Kingdom, ninety four foreign nationals have been arrested as a result of European arrest warrants (part 3 warrants) issued by the UK. 74 of these have been surrendered to the UK. These figures comprise both those sought for prosecution and those who have already been convicted.

Identity Cards

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will make a statement on progress with the national identity card scheme.

Meg Hillier: The Government remain committed to the introduction of the national identity scheme.
	ID cards are essential in combating identity fraud and illegal immigration and in disrupting organised crime and the continued threat of terrorism.

Illegal Immigrants

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) illegal immigrants and  (b) failed asylum seekers were granted leave to remain in the UK as a result of amnesties in each of the last 10 years.

Liam Byrne: There have been no amnesties in the last 10 years for people who have no legal basis for stay in the United Kingdom.

Illegal Immigrants

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many overstayers there have been in the UK since 1997, broken down by estimated period of overstay.

Liam Byrne: As the former Home Secretary set out in his evidence to the Home Affairs Select Committee on 23 May 2006, following the dismantling of embarkation controls beginning in 1994, no government has been able to produce an accurate figure for the number of people who are in the country illegally. The Home Secretary has set a clear goal of reintroducing systems to count everyone in and out of Britain. The majority of passengers will be checked in and out of the United Kingdom by 2009.

Immigration: Doctors

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many qualified medical doctors have been granted permission to remain in the United Kingdom under the Fresh Talent scheme following qualification under an HND, degree level or Masters or Doctoral course in England and Wales.

Liam Byrne: The information requested could be obtained by the detailed examination of individual records only at disproportionate cost.

Passports: Photographs

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  for what reasons photographs accompanying passport applications may be rejected; and what proportion have been rejected for each reason in the last 12 months;
	(2)  what proportion of photographs were rejected for passport applications in the last 12 months, broken down by  (a) age,  (b) ethnic background and  (c) disability status of applicant.

Meg Hillier: The Identity and Passport Service (IPS) collate photo rejections under 47 different headings. The possible reasons for rejection reflect the standards set out in the guidance in the passport application pack. These standards are designed to ensure that when the photograph is scanned onto the passport system a good quality facial biometric is captured.
	The most common reasons for rejections are not looking straight at the camera (7.5 per cent. of all rejections), failing to adopt a neutral expression (around 12.5 per cent.), and where the eyes are obscured (17.5 per cent.).
	Because of the way in which this data is stored it is not possible to provide a monthly breakdown of all reasons for rejection without incurring disproportionate cost.
	Reject rates have settled at around 4-5 per cent. for all applications since the revisions to the standard announced at the end of 2005. The IPS do not keep separate statistics by ethnicity or disability, but are able to waive requirements where a customer is unable to meet them due to disability. There have not been any significant complaints about the current standards impacting unfavourably on disabled or ethnic minority customers, and a wide consultation process was carried out during the formulation of the standards.
	Separate statistics are kept for children aged five and under. Photographs for children of this age only need to be a good likeness, with a clear image of the child. Rejection rates for these applications average around 2.5 to 3 per cent. Around 30 per cent. of these are rejected due to the photograph being too light, and the IPS continues to work with the photographic industry to ensure they are able to provide the public with acceptable photographs.

Safety Belts: Children

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many enforcement campaigns have been carried out on child car seats following the introduction of new child car seat legislation since 18 September 2006; and what level of compliance has been achieved.

Vernon Coaker: Enforcement of the new legislation is an operational matter for the police. The information requested is not collected centrally.
	Compliance with the new legislation has been encouraged by an extensive Department for Transport advertising campaign costing around £600,000. This offered advice to parents on how the new measures affect them and also on what is needed to comply with the law. The campaign included coverage on national television and radio, in parenting magazines and on-line, as well as the distribution of 3.5 million items of literature.
	It is too early to provide meaningful information on what level of compliance has been achieved following the introduction of the new legislation on 18 September 2006. A survey in October 2006, available at http://www.thinkroadsafety.gov.uk/campaigns/childseats/rates.htm did however compare the observed wearing rates for child restraints with the previous three surveys. This does show an increase since the April survey.

INNOVATION, UNIVERSITIES AND SKILLS

Apprentices

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills which 10  (a) companies and  (b) trades have provided the largest number of apprenticeships.

David Lammy: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) does not hold data on all employers that recruit apprentices as contracts may be with a training provider which in turn has arrangements with employers. However information is available on the 10 employers who hold the largest contracts directly with the LSC for their apprenticeship funded provision—this is shown in table 1.
	Table 2 shows the 10 sectors that offer the largest number of apprenticeships and the numbers of young people in learning in those sectors in June 2007.
	
		
			  Table 1 
			  Employer  Total in learning (at June 2007) 
			 Directorate of Educational and Training Services (Army) 5,759 
			 Royal Air Force 2,347 
			 Naval Recruiting and Training Agency 2,320 
			 Carillion Construction Limited 1,682 
			 TUI UK Limited 717 
			 BAE Systems plc 633 
			 Vodafone UK Limited 449 
			 British Gas Services Limited 413 
			 Land Rover 347 
			 The Football Association Premier League Limited 338 
			 Total 15,004 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2 
			  A26 code  Sector framework  Advanced apprenticeship  Apprenticeship  Total 
			 116 Construction 4,690 21,414 26,104 
			 106 Engineering 15,411 8,295 23,706 
			 217 Hairdressing 3,853 17,911 21,764 
			 105 Electrotechnical 15,353 1,233 16,586 
			 104 Children's Care Learning and Development 7,778 7,863 15,651 
			 102 Business Administration 4,687 10,112 14,799 
			 220 Hospitality and Catering 4,007 10,360 14,367 
			 263 Customer Service 4,225 9,997 14,222 
			 328 Vehicle Maintenance and Repair 3,110 8,005 11,115 
			 117 Plumbing 4,746 5,076 9,822

Apprentices

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many apprenticeships were not completed in the last year for which figures were available; what the principal categories of reasons for non-completion were; what percentage of cases fell within each category; and what total financial cost was associated with non-completion of apprenticeships.

David Lammy: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) uses individual learner level data to calculate overall apprenticeship framework achievement rates. Over the past few years the framework achievement rates have increased dramatically from 24 per cent. in 2001-02 to 59 per cent. so far in 2006-07. Framework completion relates to achievement of elements—NVQ, technical certificate, key skills and employer rights and responsibilities. Apprentices who do not achieve all elements are not counted as full achievements but may well have completed one or more of the components including a vocational qualification. The LSG does not collect data on all the reasons for non-completion, or circumstances of partial completion, of full apprenticeship frameworks.
	Estimates of the cost of non-completion, or partial completion, of apprenticeship frameworks could only be obtained by analysis of individual learner data and at disproportionate cost.

Apprentices: Per Capita Costs

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills 
	(1)  what the variable unit cost is of providing an  (a) level one and  (b) level two apprenticeship course;
	(2)  what the average unit cost of providing apprenticeship training is in each region.

David Lammy: There are currently no Level 1 apprenticeships, only Level 2 and 3. The funding of apprenticeships is based on national rates for each sector framework The published rates for the apprenticeship programme are detailed in the Requirements for Funding for Work Based Learning 2006-07. The link to the document is as follows,
	http://readingroom.lsc.gov.uk/LSC/2006/funding/streams/nat-requirementsforfundingwblforyoungpeople200607-re-jul2006.pdf
	A hard copy will be placed in the Library.
	Apprenticeship rates vary on a sector framework basis and do not vary by region of the LSC. Providers may be entitled to a disadvantage uplift based on the Index of Multiple Deprivation 2000 and calculated on their historic recruitment patterns. The published national rates for apprenticeships are contained within the 'Requirements for Funding for Work Based Learning 2006-07' document. The link to the publication is as provided previously.

Biotechnology: Research

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills which research projects his Department has conducted on agricultural biotechnology in each of the last 10 years; and what the cost was in each case.

Ian Pearson: holding answer 28 June 2007
	 Since its commencement in 2004, the DTI's Technology Programme has offered support for research in agricultural biotechnology for one project, which is called "Contained Agronomy for the Production of Plant Based Pharmaceuticals". The project is forecasting project costs of £787,000 and has been offered support of £393,000.
	Two research projects that are considered to fall into the definition of agricultural biotechnology were directly funded by the DTI as opposed to the Research Councils, in the past 10 years.
	A project under the LINK scheme ran between 1999 and 2004 on "Phytoremediation: an integrated approach to the decontamination of polluted soils". The grant awarded by the Department was £133,000.
	In 2004 the DTI moved support for research projects into the Technology Programme. Since its commencement in 2004 the Programme has offered support for one project in this area, "Contained Agronomy for the Production of Plant Based Pharmaceuticals". The grant awarded by the Department was £394,000 for a three-year project that started in 2005.

Departmental Reorganisation

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what the total costs associated with the division of  (a) staff,  (b) office space,  (c) office equipment and  (d) furnishings are expected to be as a consequence of the division of the Department for Education and Skills.

John Denham: The information requested can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departments: Ex-servicemen

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills if he will make a statement on the role of his Department in providing training for end-of-service military personnel.

David Lammy: Each year some 18,000 people will leave the armed forces to work in UK civilian companies.
	This Department's Skills strategy particularly aims to improve level 2 (equivalent to 5 GCSEs at A*-C) and literacy, language and numeracy skills for all adults. DIUS is working to increase the number of adults succeeding in national qualifications, while reducing barriers to learning.
	DIUS works closely with the armed forces on its further education strategy (and also the army basic skills programme). The armed forces provide opportunities for training for all, no matter what was achieved in school or college. The literacy and numeracy standards of all recruits are assessed and those identified with poor skills for life are then given systematic support, so that before they start their vocational training, the minimum standard that all are operating at, is entry level 3 in numeracy and literacy. That support is contextualised, making learning applicable to the workplace, with the target that all have gained at least level 1 qualifications in literacy and numeracy (equivalent to GCSE level at D-G) within four years of joining, with opportunities to then gain vocational qualifications at level 2.
	The armed forces train their personnel, with support from DIUS, so that they have transferable skills and nationally recognised vocational qualifications, to enable them to take up a civilian career when they leave service. The armed forces is one of the largest deliverers of apprenticeships in the country, in the past year some 5,500 apprenticeships, nearly 2,500 advanced apprenticeships and over 7,500 stand-alone NVQ or other level 2 qualifications were completed by armed forces personnel. In addition, assistance with resettlement is provided, to ensure personnel are fully prepared for civilian life.

Departments: Manpower

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many employees there are in his Department, broken down by pay grade.

John Denham: The Department has a total of 1,854 staff. Prior to the recent machinery of government changes, these staff were employed by different Government Departments, which had their own pay grades below the senior civil service. The following breakdown therefore indicates roughly equivalent grades:
	
		
			   Number 
			 AA 92 
			 AO 381 
			 EO 350 
			 HEO 325 
			 SEO 262 
			 G7 315 
			 G6 50 
			 SCS 79 
			 Total 1,854

Departments: Ministerial Policy Advisers

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many special advisers are employed by his Department.

John Denham: At this time none, but consideration is being given to the employment of up to two advisers.

Departments: Prisons

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills if he will make a statement on the role of his Department in the prison sector.

David Lammy: Employment is known to be a key factor in helping to reduce re-offending. The principal role for my Department is to provide an effective learning and skills service for prisoners, as well as those serving sentences in the community, to improve their skills and employability, and increase their motivation to turn away from crime to become more productive members of society. We will do this by delivering the programme of reform set out in 'Reducing Re-offending Through Skills and Employment: Next Steps' (December 2006).
	Seizing new, global opportunities requires a world-class skills base, not only through the expansion of high-end graduate skills but also by raising the skills of the wider adult workforce, including those currently unskilled. The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills will lead the work to ensure that the nation has the skilled workforce it needs to compete in the global economy, and that includes developing the skills of those in the prison sector, including the workforce.

Departments: Property

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills which properties his Department occupies.

John Denham: The Department, including Executive agencies and trading funds, but not including non-departmental public bodies, occupies the following buildings:
	Sanctuary Buildings, Great Smith Street, London
	Caxton House, Tothill Street, London
	Moorfoot, Sheffield
	Castle View House, Runcorn
	1 Victoria Street, London
	151 Buckingham Palace Road, London
	Mowden Hall, Darlington
	Building 84, Stanton Avenue, Teddington, Middlesex
	Concept House, Cardiff Road, Newport

Departments: Public Transport

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what incentives he has considered to encourage staff in his Department to use public transport.

David Lammy: The main incentive the Department offers are interest-free loans for season tickets for travel to work. Use of public transport is encouraged by departmental policies including limited car parking, free cycle parking with showers available for staff to use before starting work, flexible working, using public transport during the course of travel and making use of travel websites and information services, such as Transport Direct. Staff are also informed about local transport initiatives and promotions. Where the location or nature of the work makes public transport use impractical for staff, car sharing and the use of low emission vehicles is encouraged.

English Language: Education

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what progress has been made in developing guidance for providers of English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) on the financial evidence that will need to be provided by learners to get fee remission for ESOL courses.

David Lammy: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) funding guidance for 2007-08 outlines the position on ESOL funding and details the categories of learners who are entitled to fee remission. This is available on the LSC website at:
	www.lsc.gov.uk/providers/funding-policy/Furthereducation/Funding_Guidance_for_Further_Education_in_200708.htm.
	In addition, the LSC has recently published guidance on use of the additional £4.6 million in 2007-08 to the Learner Support Hardship Fund which will support vulnerable learners, including spouses and low-paid workers who may need support to pay their ESOL fees. This is available at:
	http://readingroom.lsc.gov.uk/lsc/National/nat-discretionarv-lsc-guidance-0708.pdf.

Higher Education

Ian Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what the procedure is for granting university status; and how many applications have been approved in the last 12 months.

Bill Rammell: Institutions must apply to the Privy Council in order to be granted a university title. The Privy Council will then seek advice from the Department who will consider whether an institution meets its criteria for university title; consulting the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education and the Higher Education Funding Council for England as necessary. The Department's criteria for university title are that an institution must:
	(a) have been granted powers to award taught degrees under the 2004 criteria;
	(b) normally have at least 4,000 full time equivalent higher education students, of whom at least 3,000 are registered on degree level courses (including foundation degree programmes); and
	(c) be able to demonstrate that it has regard to the principles of good governance as are relevant to its sector.
	In the last 12 months, the Privy Council has approved three applications for university title: Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, St. Martin's College and York St. John University College.

Literacy: Prisoners

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many and what proportion of prisoners were recorded as illiterate over the last 10 years.

David Lammy: The numbers and proportion of prisoners whose reading was assessed at reception as being below Level 1, which could be used as a proxy for functionally illiteracy, is recorded as follows:
	
		
			  Prisoners whose reading was assessed as below level 1: 
			   Number  Proportion (%) 
			 1997-98 39,643 27.5 
			 1998-99 47,298 26.8 
			 1999-2000 89,623 30.5 
			 2000-01 89,623 30.9 
			 2001-02 94,248 34.1 
			 2002-03 96,589 36.9 
		
	
	The information is taken from the 'Prison Statistics for England and Wales', an annual publication produced by the Home Office until 2003.

BUSINESS, ENTERPRISE AND REGULATORY REFORM

Bankruptcy: Agriculture

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many and what proportion of farmers were declared bankrupt in  (a) Ribble Valley,  (b) the north-west and  (c) the UK in each year since 1979.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 3 July 2007
	The closest available estimates for bankruptcies among farmers are the numbers of bankruptcy orders made under the category "agriculture and horticulture" according to the Insolvency Trade Classification (ITC). The following table provides the figures for England and Wales, which are available from 1990 onwards.
	Bankruptcies in Scotland and Northern Ireland are the responsibility of the devolved administrations and, while total bankruptcies could be provided, a breakdown by industry is not available.
	Bankruptcy statistics are classified regionally according to the locations and areas of responsibility of official receivers' (OR's) offices, each of which covers a number of courts having insolvency jurisdiction, and are not directly comparable with administrative geographies. Statistics broken down by both industry and regionally are not readily available for the period requested.
	The Insolvency Trade Classification is not consistent with the Standard Industrial Classification 2003 (SIC2003) which is used to classify businesses, nor is the regional classification in use consistent with standard administrative geographies such as counties and government office regions (GORs). It is not, therefore, possible to provide reliable estimates of the proportions of farmers becoming bankrupt, either at the regional or national level.
	
		
			  Bankruptcy orders  in England and Wales in the agriculture sector  (E and W), January 1990 to September 2006 
			   Number 
			 1990 198 
			 1991 266 
			 1992 313 
			 1993 277 
			 1994 231 
			 1995 218 
			 1996 168 
			 1997 155 
			 1998 157 
			 1999 183 
			 2000 173 
			 2001 183 
			 2002 132 
			 2003 151 
			 2004 204 
			 2005 195 
			 2006(1) 129 
			 (1) Up to September. Figures from October 2006 are not available due to development work to update the classification of new cases to the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) 2003.  Note: Figures are not available prior to January 1990.

Business Council for Britain

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what expenses members of the new Business Council for Britain will be able to claim.

Stephen Timms: Members of the Business Council will not be paid, but the Department will of course be prepared to meet such reasonable expenses directly related to their contribution to the Council as members wish to claim.

Company Liquidations

Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many directors of phoenix companies were disqualified in each year from 2005; and how many of these disqualifications involved directors not undertaking to act as a director voluntarily.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 28 June 2007
	 No separate statistics are maintained by the Insolvency Service for disqualification action taken against directors of companies, which might fall within the description of "phoenix" companies. Many successor companies to failed companies are formed as a result of legitimate arrangements between the directors and the office holder whereby assets are transferred at proper values. The conduct of the directors is only likely to be called into question where assets have been transferred from the insolvent company to the new company at an undervalue, where the directors have caused the successor company to trade under a name which is for them prohibited by virtue of section 216 Insolvency Act 1986 or where the successor company has failed for the same reasons as its predecessor. Although statistics are not kept to identify the numbers of disqualification orders or disqualification undertakings where the matters of unfitness include one or more of the elements referred to above the Insolvency Service records show that one or more of those matters of unfitness were alleged in seven cases for which disqualification proceedings were authorised in the year to 31 March 2006 and in 18 cases in the year to 31 March 2007.

Company Liquidations

Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many calls have been received on phoenix companies by the enforcement hotline in each year since 2005; and how many of these calls were referred for investigation.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 28 June 2007
	 No separate statistics are maintained by the hotline team for "phoenix" complaints. It is likely that complaints to the hotline regarding so called "phoenix companies" will be recorded as a complaint under section 216 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (reuse of a prohibited name after a certain type of insolvency). It is possible that section 216 may also apply to new businesses run by directors, which are not successor companies to the insolvent company and which cannot therefore be regarded as "phoenix companies". The number of complaints received by the hotline which specifically relate to section 216 is seven for the period from August 2005 to March 2006, eight for the year to March 2007 and five so far for the current year. Of those one has been referred to Legal Services Division for possible prosecution action.

Company Liquidations

Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many directors of companies have been prosecuted for offences relating to phoenix operations.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 28 June 2007
	 There is no precise legal definition of a "phoenix" company but it is normally thought of as one formed by the directors of a failed company to take over the business and some or all of the assets of the failed company but without any of its liabilities. The only criminal offence specially related to Phoenix operations is where the directors have caused the successor company to trade under a name which is for them prohibited by virtue of section 216 Insolvency Act 1986.
	Statistics for convictions under section 216 of the Insolvency Act 1986 have only been published since the year 2005-06. The convictions are:
	
		
			   Number 
			 2005-06 19 
			 2006-07 21

Departments: European Union

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many officials in his Department are  (a) involved in assisting European Council negotiations,  (b) involved in assisting and advising the European Commission,  (c) seconded to the European Commission,  (d) involved in monitoring EU decisions, communications, regulations and directives, (e) involved in enforcing compliance with EU decisions, communications, regulations and directives and (f) involved in other work related to the European Council, Commission or Court of Justice.

Gareth Thomas: Officials throughout the former Department of Trade and Industry were involved in a full range of EU business. Those working specifically on EU business totalled around 200. In addition, there are a number of Seconded National Experts working on priority policy areas in the European Commission in Brussels, usually around a dozen individuals. A breakdown of the figures as requested would incur disproportionate cost.

Departments: Marketing

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what plans he has to replace the banners in the window of his Department's building at 1 Victoria Street.

Patrick McFadden: I shall be considering how best to convey the new Department's aims and objectives to the business community and wider public. This includes the display material in the Department's offices.

Departments: Pensions

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many and what percentage of staff in his Department are making additional voluntary contributions to their pensions; and what steps he has taken in the last year to encourage more people to make such contributions.

Gareth Thomas: 283 members of staff in the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (8.2 per cent. of the total number of staff employed by the department) currently make additional voluntary pension contributions through deductions from their pay.
	Pension scheme members receive an annual benefit statement showing the pension built up to date, and also a projection of pension on retirement if the member continues in service to scheme pension age. The benefit statement provides details of the Civil Service Pensions website where staff can obtain further information, including on options for making additional voluntary contributions to boost their pension.

Departments: Public Transport

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what analysis his Department has made of the number of its staff using public transport to commute.

Gareth Thomas: The Department has not made any central analysis of the number of staff using public transport to commute. However there is very limited availability of car parking spaces across the Department's estate and therefore the vast majority of staff will use public transport to travel to work.

Disabled: Concessions

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many people who retired from the coal industry due to ill health under the age of 50 years have been informed they are not eligible for concessionary coal.

Malcolm Wicks: The Department does not retain this type of information.
	Eligibility for an entitlement to concessionary fuel is specified in Fuel Agreements, which have been agreed with the Mining Unions and form part of an employee's terms and conditions of employment.
	The award is made by the employer, when the miner leaves employment and no information is held by Government on how many miners, on leaving employment, have not met the criteria specified in the Fuel Agreements.

Disclosure of Information

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many whistleblowers in the public services have sought redress from their employer using the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998.

Patrick McFadden: Workers who believe they have been unfairly dismissed or otherwise detrimentally treated for whistleblowing can complain to an employment tribunal under the 1998 Act. Numbers of claims accepted by the tribunals since the Act came into force in 1999 where PIDA was at least one of the grounds cited are shown in the table.
	
		
			   Claims 
			 1999-2000 165 
			 2000-01 414 
			 2001-02 534 
			 2002-03 665 
			 2003-04 758 
			 2004-05 872 
			 2005-06 1,037 
			 2006-07 1,356 
			 Total 5,801 
		
	
	Separate records are not maintained for claims made by workers in the public services.

Employment Act 2002 (Dispute Resolution) Regulations

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what plans his Department has to amend or repeal the Employment Act 2002 (Dispute Resolution) Regulations.

Patrick McFadden: The consultation paper "Resolving disputes in the workplace", published on 21 March 2007, invited views on whether the Regulations should be repealed. My Department's plans on the way forward will be set out in our response to that consultation which will be published in due course.

Employment Agencies

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform when he last met representatives of the recruitment industry.

Patrick McFadden: Last month, my hon. Friend the Member for Poplar and Canning Town (Jim Fitzpatrick) met industry representatives at the Recruitment and Employment Confederation's (REC) "One In A Million Award" event, where he gave the keynote speech.
	I look forward to meeting industry representatives shortly.

Employment Agencies: Temporary Employment

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what representations he has received in the last 12 months from representatives of the recruitment industry on the law on temporary and agency workers; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: BERR officials are in regular contact with representatives of the recruitment industry and have received a number of representations on the law regarding temporary and agency workers. Most recently, BERR has received representations from the industry in response to the recent consultation on measures to protect vulnerable agency workers.
	My officials are currently analysing responses to this consultation, including those from the recruitment industry.

Employment Dispute Resolution Review

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform when his Department expects to respond to the Gibbons review.

Patrick McFadden: The Government responded to the Gibbons review by publishing a consultation paper, "Resolving disputes in the workplace" (URN 07/734), on 21 March 2007. Copies were placed in the Libraries of the House. The consultation closed on 20 June 2007 and BERR will publish a response to the consultation in due course.

Employment Dispute Resolution Review

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform whether he plans to publish the evidence considered by the Gibbons Review.

Patrick McFadden: Michael Gibbons summarised the evidence he had considered in his report published on 21 March 2007. His review was independent of Government and did not invite formal submissions of evidence.

Employment Dispute Resolution Review

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform if he will place in the Library all representations received on the Gibbons Review.

Patrick McFadden: Responses received to the Government's consultation on the Gibbons review will be made publicly available in the usual way, except where confidentiality has been requested.

Employment Dispute Resolution Review

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform whether his Department has estimated the effect on the costs of  (a) employees,  (b) employers and  (c) the Government of implementing the recommendations of the Gibbons Review.

Patrick McFadden: Estimates of the impact of implementing the Gibbons review were set out in the partial regulatory impact assessment published in the consultation paper "Resolving disputes in the workplace" on 21 March 2007. Copies of the paper were placed in the Libraries of the House.

Enterprise Act 2002: Insolvency

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what proportion of individual voluntary arrangements were made  (a) pre-bankruptcy and  (b) post-bankruptcy in each year since the introduction of the Enterprise Act 2002.

Patrick McFadden: The personal insolvency provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002 came into force on 1 April 2004.
	
		
			   Post-bankruptcy IVAs as a percentage of all IVAs  Pre-bankruptcy IVAs as a percentage of all IVAs 
			 2004-05 1.16 98.84 
			 2005-06 0.46 99.54 
			 2006-07 0.15 99.85

Enterprise Act 2002: Insolvency

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the insolvency provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: The Insolvency Service is undertaking a comprehensive evaluation of the Enterprise Act 2002 insolvency provisions, overseen by an Evaluation Group of independent stakeholders.
	The evaluation includes both quantitative and qualitative data collected from various sources over a four-year period, including five pieces of independent academic research and internal analyses of Insolvency Service data. In order to better understand the evaluation data, benchmark information was obtained regarding the operation and effect of the pre-existing legislation.
	Full details of the evaluation are set out in the minutes of the Evaluation Group, the evaluation planning papers, interim evaluation reports, academic research reports and internal analyses, available on the Insolvency Service website:
	www.insolvency.gov.uk
	The final evaluation report on the corporate insolvency provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002 is due to be published in summer 2007, and the final evaluation report on the individual insolvency provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002 is due to be published in autumn 2007.

Enterprise Act 2002: Insolvency

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many bankruptcy orders have been made in each year since the implementation of the Enterprise Act 2002.

Patrick McFadden: The following table shows the number of bankruptcy orders in England and Wales from April 2004, when the individual insolvency provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002 came into force.
	
		
			  Bankruptcy orders in England and Wales, seasonally adjusted 
			   Bankruptcy orders 
			 2004-05 38,130 
			 2005-06 52,327 
			 2006-07 64,488

Enterprise Act 2002: Insolvency

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many  (a) fast-track voluntary arrangements and  (b) post-bankruptcy individual voluntary arrangements were made in each year since the introduction of the Enterprise Act 2002.

Patrick McFadden: The individual insolvency provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002 came into force on 1 April 2004.
	
		
			   Fast track voluntary arrangements  Total number of post-bankruptcy IVAs 
			 2004-05 8 135 
			 2005-06 9 114 
			 2006-07 3 71

Enterprise Act 2002: Insolvency

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform whether his Department has assessed the volume of  (a) individual voluntary arrangements and  (b) fast-track voluntary arrangements resulting from the implementation of the Enterprise Act 2002's insolvency provisions prior to its enactment.

Patrick McFadden: There are no statistics for the number of FTVAs for the period before the Enterprise Act was enacted as they were introduced by that Act. Insolvency statistics are produced quarterly. IVA numbers for the five calendar years prior to the enactment of the individual insolvency provisions of the Enterprise Act and for the period subsequent to enactment are as follows:
	
		
			   Number of IVAs 
			 2000 7,978 
			 2001 6,298 
			 2002 6,295 
			 2003 7,583 
			 2004 10,752 
			 2005 20,293 
			 2006 44,332 
		
	
	FTVAs were introduced on 1 April 2004. In the year 2004-05 there were five approved FTVAs, for 2005-06 there were 12 and for 2006-07 there were three.

Enterprise Act 2002: Insolvency

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what the preliminary conclusions of the Insolvency Service's interim evaluation of the Enterprise Act 2002 were in respect of  (a) post-bankruptcy individual voluntary arrangements and  (b) fast-track voluntary arrangements.

Patrick McFadden: The interim evaluation reports on the individual insolvency provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002 can be accessed on the Insolvency Service website on
	www.insolvency.gov.uk
	Neither of the interim evaluation reports reach any conclusions about post-bankruptcy IVAs or FTVAs as their main purpose is to inform stakeholders of ongoing work. The evaluation of the individual insolvency provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002 will be published later this year.

Enterprise Act 2002: Insolvency

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform when he expects to publish the results of the Insolvency Service's evaluation of the Enterprise Act 2002; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: The Insolvency Service is undertaking a comprehensive evaluation of the Enterprise Act 2002 insolvency provisions, overseen by an Evaluation Group of independent stakeholders.
	The final evaluation report on the individual insolvency provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002 is due to be published later this year.
	Full details of the evaluation are set out in the minutes of the Evaluation Group, the evaluation planning papers, interim evaluation reports, academic research reports and internal analyses, available on The Insolvency Service website:
	www.insolvency.gov.uk

EU Law: Recycling

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what assessment he has made of the impact on small businesses of registration fees for the distributor take-back scheme of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive.

Malcolm Wicks: Valpak Retail WEEE Services Ltd. operates the Distributor Takeback Scheme (DTS). As part of the Government's desire to keep the costs down for SMEs the DTS registration fees have been tiered, based on the levels of sales of electrical and electronic equipment.

EU Law: Recycling

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform whether he made an assessment of the  (a) likely cost to and  (b) other implications for small businesses of depositing Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment in a distributor collection facility; and the consequences for small businesses as a result.

Malcolm Wicks: The WEEE regulations do not alter current arrangements regarding businesses, including SMEs gaining access to local authority civic amenity sites and waste transfer stations. Local authorities are not obliged to accept trade waste and a decision on whether to do so is at their discretion.

EU Law: Recycling

Janet Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what assessment his Department has made of the  (a) financial and  (b) other impacts of the implementation of the Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment Regulations and the necessary registration to Valpak on smaller retailers.

Malcolm Wicks: A full Regulatory Impact Assessment was published alongside the WEEE Regulations and provides an estimate of the costs and benefits of the implementation on smaller retailers. Retailers of electrical and electronic equipment are required to be a member of the Distributor Takeback Scheme (DTS) operated by Valpak Retail WEEE Services Ltd unless they offer in store take-back.
	As part of the Government's desire to keep the costs down for SMEs the DTS registration fees have been tiered, based on the levels of sales of electrical and electronic equipment.

Food: Packaging

Don Touhig: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what discussions his Department has had with major supermarkets on ensuring that food packaging is user friendly for the  (a) elderly and  (b) disabled.

Stephen Timms: No such discussions have been held.

Industrial Relations: Disputes Procedures

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what measures his Department has taken to increase the use of mediation in employment disputes.

Patrick McFadden: BERR funds the work of the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) including the provision of conciliation for employment disputes.

Industrial Relations: Disputes Procedures

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what assessment his Department has made of the availability of mediation services for employment disputes; and whether his Department plans to increase that availability.

Patrick McFadden: The Department is aware that mediation is available from a variety of sources including ACAS. The recent consultation, "Resolving disputes in the workplace" sought views on encouraging earlier conciliation in appropriate cases; responses to this will be taken into consideration.

Industrial Relations: Disputes Procedures

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform whether guidance published by his Department on employment disputes contains information on local mediation services.

Patrick McFadden: Guidance published by this Department on employment disputes does not contain information on local mediation services.

Industrial Relations: Disputes Procedures

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform when his Department expects to bring forward proposals on the procedure to reform unfair dismissal employment disputes.

Patrick McFadden: The consultation paper "Resolving disputes in the workplace", published on 21 March 2007, invited views on proposals on procedures for unfair dismissal employment disputes. My Department's plans on the way forward will be set out in our response to this consultation which will be published in due course.

National Grid: Carbon Emissions

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the carbon content of grid electricity is reduced.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 10 July 2007
	 The Government have set out in the Energy White Paper measures aimed at reducing the carbon content of electricity generation. These include:
	Strengthening the EU Emissions Trading Scheme
	Strengthening the Renewables Obligation
	Consulting on civil nuclear power
	Launching a competition to demonstrate carbon capture and storage in the UK

Overseas Trade: Taiwan

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what the value of UK  (a) exports to and  (b) imports from Taiwan was in each of the last five years.

Gareth Thomas: The following table shows data for UK trade in goods and services with Taiwan.
	
		
			  £ million 
			   UK exports to Taiwan  UK imports from Taiwan 
			 2001 1,165 2,932 
			 2002 1,214 2,564 
			 2003 1,268 2,371 
			 2004 1,446 2,539 
			 2005 1,483 2,440 
			  Source: Table 9.3, ONS Balance of Payments Pink Book, 2006 
		
	
	Initial estimates for 2006 and revisions for earlier years are expected to be published on 20 July 2007.

Performing Arts: Children

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform whether children's agencies specialising in theatre, TV and modelling have to register with a Government Department or other body.

Patrick McFadden: While entertainment agencies do not have to register with a Government Department, they are required to meet the provisions under the Employment Agencies Act 1973 and associated Conduct Regulations. These are designed to protect the interests of those using the services they provide. The Regulations include provisions to prevent agencies supplying unsuitable people to work with the vulnerable, including children.
	Children may not work in television, theatre or other similar activities, including modelling, without a performance licence issued by the local authority under the Children and Young Persons Acts 1933 and 1963, as amended. It is however the responsibility of employers, rather than agencies, to ensure that a child is licensed and that the terms of a licence are complied with.
	In addition, the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006, which will be implemented from autumn 2008, provides the legislative framework to help prevent unsuitable people from working with children.

Post Offices

Don Touhig: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what opportunities post offices have to expand the range of goods and services they offer.

Patrick McFadden: The sub-postmasters and mistresses who own and operate 97 per cent. of the 14,000 post offices in the network are private business people. They are free to develop their associated retail businesses and pursue commercial arrangements with whoever they want to so long as the products provided are not in direct competition with key Post Office products that provide income to support the network.

Post Offices

Don Touhig: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what new products and services have been developed by the Post Office with the aim of encouraging the recruitment of sub-postmasters.

Patrick McFadden: The development of new Post Office products and services is an operational matter for the company's management. In recent years Post Office Ltd. has worked hard to introduce new products and services to replace traditional declining markets. Post Office Ltd. is now the largest provider of foreign currency in the UK and the third largest provider of travel insurance. The Post Office is also the UK's fifth largest fixed-line telephone service provider and opened 175,000 Instant Saver Accounts in the product's first year. More products are in the pipeline including a broadband service in partnership with BT.

HEALTH

Abortion

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many abortions were carried out at each week of gestation between 18 and 32 weeks in 2006; what the  (a) age of mother,  (b) residency of mother,  (c) grounds for abortion , (d) marital status of mother,  (e) number of previous children and  (f) number of previous abortions were in each case; and how many and what percentage of those abortions were performed in the (i) public and (ii) private sector.

Dawn Primarolo: The available information is set out in the following tables.
	
		
			  Abortions by age and gestation 18 weeks and over( 1) , residents, England and Wales, 2006. 
			   Gestation 
			  Age  18  19  20  21  22  23  24+  Total 
			 Under 20 375 357 262 213 175 168 11 1,561 
			 20 to 24 386 324 280 207 172 121 22 1,512 
			 25 to 29 250 180 176 125 112 98 28 969 
			 30 to 34 165 104 117 113 76 66 43 684 
			 35+ 181 146 97 96 81 57 32 690 
			 Total 1,357 1,111 932 754 616 510 136 5,416 
			 (1) Totals are grouped where there are less than 10 (0-nine) cases, or where a presented value would reveal a total less than 10 (0-nine) when used with data already published. 
		
	
	
		
			  Abortions by country of residence and gestation 18 weeks and over1, performed in England and Wales, 2006. 
			   Gestation 
			  Country of residence  18  19  20  21  22  23  24+  Total 
			 England and Wales 1,357 1,111 932 754 616 510 136 5,416 
			 Scotland 11 20 27 20 31 (2)— (2)— 121 
			 Republic of Ireland 56 28 37 25 15 (2)— (2)— 180 
			 Other non resident 45 35 28 25 20 (2)— (2)— 189 
			 (1) Totals are grouped where there are less than 10 (0-9) cases, or where a presented value would reveal a total less than 10 (0-9) when used with data already published. (2) Suppressed value. 
		
	
	
		
			  Abortions by grounds and gestation 18 weeks and over( 1) , residents, England and Wales, 2006. 
			   Gestation 
			  Grounds  18  19  20  21  22  23  24+  Total 
			 Section 1(1)(a) and other(2) 1,242 1,021 787 573 485 398 0 4,506 
			 Section 1(1)(d) 115 90 145 181 131 112 136(2) 910 
			 (1) Totals are grouped where there are less than 10 (0-9) cases, or where a presented value would reveal a total less than 10 (0-9) when used with data already published. (2) abortions 24 weeks and over and carried out under sections l(l)(b), l(l)(c) and 1(4) of the Abortion Act are included in total 136. Section l(l)(a): that the pregnancy has not exceeded its twenty-fourth week and that the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated, of injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman or any existing children of her family. Section l(l)(b): that the termination is necessary to prevent grave permanent injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman. Section l(l)(c): that the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk to the life of the pregnant woman, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated Section l(l)(d): that there is a substantial risk that if the child were born it would suffer from such physical or mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped. Section 1(4): that the termination is immediately necessary to save the life or to prevent grave permanent injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman. 
		
	
	
		
			  Abortions by marital status and gestation 18 weeks and over( 1) , residents, England and Wales, 2006. 
			   Gestation 
			  Marital status  18  19  20  21  22  23  24+  Total 
			 Single 924 750 625 504 397 349 49 3,598 
			 Married 177 150 154 147 117 99 66 910 
			 Divorced, separated, widowed 34 23 14 (2)— 11 (2)— (2)— 101 
			 Not known/not stated 222 188 139 (2)— 91 (2)— (2)— 807 
			 Total 1,357 1,111 932 754 616 510 136 5,416 
			 (1) Totals are grouped where there are less than 10 (0-9) cases, or where a presented value would reveal a total less than 10 (0-9) when used with data already published. (2) Suppressed value. 
		
	
	
		
			  Abortions by number of previous live or still births and gestation 18 weeks and over( 1) , residents, England and Wales, 2006. 
			   Gestation 
			  Number of previous live births or stillbirths (over 24 weeks)  18  19  20  21  22  23  24+  Total 
			 0 730 641 550 445 386 313 64 3,129 
			 1 298 239 186 164 122 103 39 1,151 
			 2 169 118 113 89 64 52 19 624 
			 3 or more 160 113 83 56 44 42 14 512 
			 Total 1,357 1,111 932 754 616 510 136 5,416 
			 (1) Totals are grouped where there are less than 10 (0 - 9) cases, or where a presented value would reveal a total less than 10 (0-9) when used with data already published. 
		
	
	
		
			  Abortions by number of previous abortions and gestation 18 weeks and over( 1) , residents, England and Wales, 2006. 
			   Gestation 
			  Number of previous abortions  18  19  20  21  22  23  24+  Total 
			 0 961 788 657 586 471 479 23 3,965 
			 1 305 252 220 124 117 — — 1,129 
			 2 or more 91 71 55 44 28 — — 322 
			 Total 1,357 1,111 932 754 616 510 136 5,416 
			 (1) Totals are grouped where there are less than 10 (0 - 9) cases, or where a presented value would reveal a total less than 10 (0-9) when used with data already published. 
		
	
	
		
			  Abortions by purchaser and gestation 18 weeks and over( 1) , residents, England and Wales, 2006. 
			  Percentage 
			   Gestation 
			  Abortions by purchaser  18  19  20  21  22  23  24+ 
			 NHS 20 16 20 28 25 25 100 
			 NHS agency 70 75 71 65 62 64 0 
			 Private 9 9 10 7 13 11 0 
			 Total 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 
			  Note: Percentages are rounded and may not add up to 100

Abortion: Access

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps his Department is taking to ensure equality of access to NHS abortion services;
	(2)  how many women in England waited  (a) less than a week,  (b) between one and two weeks,  (c) over two weeks but less than four weeks and  (d) over four weeks between the date they first requested an NHS abortion and the date of the abortion in each of the last five years.

Dawn Primarolo: We are working to ensure that women have access to abortion services as soon as possible as evidence shows that the risk of complications increases the later the gestation. We have invested £8 million to improve early access and set a standard of a maximum waiting time of three weeks. Primary care trusts' performance in this area is being measured as part of the Healthcare Commission's annual healthcheck.
	Waiting times for abortion are not available but we consider that gestation at procedure is a good indicator of waiting times. The latest data for 2006 show that progress is being made to increase early access: 65 per cent. of national health service funded abortions took place at under 10 weeks compared with 51 per cent. in 2002.
	Equality of access and more rapid access to abortion services has improved since the introduction of the Sexual Health and HIV Strategy. In 2006, 87 per cent. of abortions were NHS funded, compared with 78 per cent. in 2002. In addition, since 2002 we have collected patients self-reported ethnicity data to monitor access to services by all groups.

Abortion: Counselling

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what counselling is offered to women  (a) contemplating,  (b) during and  (c) after an abortion.

Dawn Primarolo: The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) evidence-based guideline "The Care of Women Requesting Induced Abortion (2004)" gives recommendations to commissioners and service providers on the information to be given to women contemplating an abortion, following an abortion and on women's counselling needs.
	The guideline states that professionals involved in abortion services should be equipped to provide women with the information they need, including accurate knowledge about possible complications and sequelae of abortion, in order to give genuinely informed consent. Clinicians caring for women requesting abortion should try to identify those patients who require more support in decision making than can be provided in the routine clinic setting. Facilities for additional support, including access to social services, should be available. Appropriate information and support should be available for those who consider, but do not proceed to, abortion. The guideline also recommends that referral for further counselling should be available for the small minority of women who experience long-term post abortion distress.
	A number of organisations produce patient leaflets on this issue including the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and the Family Planning Association.

Abortion: Finance

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what resources have been committed to the improvement of abortion services in 2007-08.

Dawn Primarolo: Sexual health services are funded through revenue allocations to primary care trusts (PCTs). It is for PCTs to determine how to use the funding allocated to them to commission services, including abortion services, to meet the healthcare needs of their local populations.

Contracts: Cirencester Hospital

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects the second wave independent sector treatment centre contract for Cirencester hospital to be signed.

Ben Bradshaw: It is currently anticipated that financial close will be reached on the Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Phase 2 independent sector treatment centre scheme, which includes service delivery from Cirencester hospital, in late summer 2007.

Departments: DVDs

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the titles of all DVDs produced by his Department in the last 12 months; what the cost to the public purse was of developing each; how many were produced of each; and what the overall cost to the public purse was of each, inclusive of all development, production and distribution costs.

Dawn Primarolo: It is not possible to list the titles of all DVDs produced by the Department in the last 12 months, as this information is not held centrally. To attempt to gather this information would incur disproportionate costs.

Departments: Equality

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health at what cost to the public purse his Department is sponsoring a float in the Pride London parade on 30 June 2007 as stated in his Department's 'Single Equality Scheme 2007-2010', published on 8 June 2007.

Dawn Primarolo: The Department provided £3,500 towards the costs of the health professionals float at the London Pride 2007 parade.

Departments: Equality

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health at what cost to the public purse his Department's Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Advisory Group commissioned the taking of  (a) lesbian, gay and bisexual images and  (b) transgender images as referred to in his Department's Single Equality Scheme 2007 to 2010, published on 8 June 2007; how he defines (i) lesbian, gay and bisexual images and (ii) transgender images; how many (A) lesbian, gay and bisexual images and (B) transgender images are in the NHS photo library; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: As part of the work to ensure the national health service photo library includes images representative of the entire community, the Department has added 47 images of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people at a cost of £950.00. The images are of individuals who identified themselves as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender, and who have consented to their images being used by health and social care organisations health promotion leaflets and campaigns.

Departments: Freedom of Information

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the requests made to his Department under the  (a) Freedom of Information Act (FOI) 2000 and  (b) Environmental Information regulations in the last six months; and what the (i) FOI case reference number, (ii) request summary, (iii) request outcome and (iv) reason for exemption, where appropriate, was in each case.

Dawn Primarolo: The information requested has been placed in the Library.

Departments: Manpower

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in his Department are classified as without posts, broken down by directorate in which they are employed.

Dawn Primarolo: Current position in the Department is:
	
		
			  Directorate  Number 
			 Commissioning 4 
			 Research and Development 1 
			 Health Protection, International Health and Scientific Development 3 
			 Finance and Investment 1 
			 Clinical Programmes 2 
			 Healthcare Quality 2 
			 Regional Directors of Public Health 3 
			 Departmental Management 6 
			 Chief Nursing Officer 2 
			 Total 24

Departments: Pay

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the payscale is of  (a) civil servants and  (b) those employed on a contractual basis in his Department's Commercial Directorate.

Dawn Primarolo: Civil Servants in the Department are employed on the pay scale listed as follows.
	
		
			  National pay rates 
			  £ 
			   Minimum  Maximum 
			 Administrative Officer 14,826 (1)19,449 
			 Executive Officer 18,519 (1)28,112 
			 Higher Executive Officer 23,721 32,627 
			 Senior Executive Officer 29,298 (1)41,991 
			 Grade 7 39,695 (1)56,543 
			 Grade 6 50,014 68,410 
			 (1 )2007-08 
		
	
	The pay ranges and target rates for senior civil servants as at 1 April 2007 are as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			  Pay band  Minimum  Progression target rate/salary band mid-point  Recruitment and performance ceiling 
			 1 56,100 78,540 116,000 
			 2 81,600 (1)120,800 160,000 
			 3 99,960 (1)152,480 205,000 
			 (1 )2007-08 
		
	
	The Commercial Directorate does not employ contractors but does commission services from a range of organisations. Those services are subject to the bandings listed as follows:
	
		
			  Commercial directorate contractor bandings 
			  Level   
			 1 Director/Partner £950 to £1,500 
			 2 Managing Consultant £750 to £950 
			 3 Senior Consultant £550 to £750 
			 4 Consultant £400 to £550 
			 5 Junior Consultant £250 to £400

Departments: Pensions

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what percentage of staff in his Department are making additional voluntary contributions to their pensions; and what steps he has taken in the last 12 months to encourage more people to make such contributions.

Dawn Primarolo: 163 members of staff in Department (7.2 per cent. of the total number of staff employed by the Department) currently make additional voluntary pension contributions through deductions from their pay.
	Pension scheme members receive an annual benefit statement showing the pension built up to date, and also a projection of pension on retirement if the member continues in service to scheme pension age. The benefit statement provides details of the civil service pensions website where staff can obtain further information, including on options for making additional voluntary contributions to boost their pension.
	There is also published information on our departmental intranet supporting information provided by the Cabinet Office.
	Deciding whether to invest is and must remain an entirely personal decision.

Departments: Private Finance Initiative

Jacqui Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the total cost is of all private finance initiative projects for which his Department has responsibility completed since 1997; and what the projected cost is of such projects commissioned or under way.

Ben Bradshaw: A full list of annual unitary payments to the private sector to 2033-34 can be found on the HM Treasury signed deals list at the following address:
	www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/documents/public_private_partnerships/ppp_pfi_stats.cfm
	It is not possible to forecast unitary payments at schemes still in procurement as these are not finalised until contract signature stage.

Departments: Public Expenditure

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance her Department has issued to staff on procedures for working with  (a) HM Treasury; and  (b) HM Treasury's Health Spending Team.

Ben Bradshaw: There is no standing guidance. The Finance Directorate is the normal point of contact for dealings with HM Treasury at official level; and from time to time specific guidance will be given to the Department on the procedures for coordinating particular exercises which may involve, for example, the Ministerial or Permanent Secretary Private Offices.

Departments: Public Transport

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate his Department has made of the number of its staff using public transport to commute.

Dawn Primarolo: The Department has no estimate of the number of staff using public transport to commute.

Departments: Public Transport

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what incentives he has considered to encourage staff in his Department to use public transport.

Dawn Primarolo: The Department offers interest-free loans for season tickets for travel to work. Use of public transport is encouraged by departmental policies including limited car parking, flexible working, using public transport during the course of travel and making use of travel websites and information services, such as Transport Direct. Staff are also informed about local transport initiatives and promotions.

Departments: Vetting

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent advice he has issued on security checks on  (a) existing and  (b) prospective staff in his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: The Department complies with Cabinet Office guidelines on security checks. The Department's existing staff have undergone the baseline check (formerly basic check) on entering employment with the Civil Service.
	The Department undertakes additional checks in accordance with the access levels to particular buildings or work areas, for example:
	CTC (counter terrorism check) for employees who require access to the Palace of Westminster.
	SC (security clearance) investigation including security services, criminal records and finance check for employees in ministerial private offices and other sensitive work areas.
	Advice on security checks for new recruits into the Civil Service has been directly in line with the "HMG Baseline Personnel Security Standard: A Good Practice guide to the Pre-Employment Screening of Government Staff and Contractors (July 2006)", effective 1 April 2007. This covers verification of:
	Identity;
	Employment history;
	Nationality; and
	Unspent criminal record
	The Department is compliant with the baseline personnel security standard.

Engagements

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer given by the Prime Minister on 20 June 2007,  Official Report, column 1375W, on engagements, what the evidential basis is for the statement that  (a) in 1997, 50 per cent. of the NHS estate was older than the NHS itself and  (b) today, 20 per cent. of the NHS estate is older than the NHS itself.

Ben Bradshaw: The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) undertakes a quinquennial valuation of the national health service estate. The VOA data from the 1995 survey showed that in that year, 49.5 per cent. of the NHS estate pre-dated 1948.
	Information so far provided by the NHS itself, as part of the 2006-07 Estates Returns Information Collection process, shows that the proportion of the estate older than the NHS itself has fallen to 20.4 per cent.

Health Professions Council: Finance

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding his Department made to the Health Professions Council prior to April 2004.

Ben Bradshaw: According to our records the amount of funding that was provided to the Health Professions Council for its establishment was £3,804,467.38 between 2002 and 2004.

Health Professions: Regulation

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will request the UK professional healthcare regulators to publish their recent research on the public's access to professional registers.

Ben Bradshaw: I understand that the Joint Regulators Public and Patient Involvement (PPI) group commissioned, on behalf of the healthcare professional regulatory bodies, a formal piece of research entitled "Making Registers More Usable". The regulatory bodies are using the report's findings to inform the ongoing review and development of the registers. I understand that they expect to make the report available in due course, but no final decision has yet been taken.

Health Services

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of those attending her Department's Trust, Assurance and Safety event on 5 June 2007 were  (a) from healthcare professional regulatory bodies,  (b) lay members of healthcare professional regulatory bodies,  (c) from public and patient representative organisations,  (d) members of the public,  (e) health officials,  (f) from other health and social care regulators and  (g) others.

Ben Bradshaw: The proportions of those who attended the Department's Trust, Assurance and Safety event on 5 June 2007 were as follows:
	from healthcare professional regulatory bodies = 14 per cent.
	lay members of healthcare professional regulatory bodies = 2 per cent. (which is included in above)
	from public and patient representative organisations and members of the public = 5 per cent.
	health officials = 34 per cent.
	from other health and social care regulators = 39 per cent.
	others = 8 per cent.

Health Services: Procurement

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how long the Framework for Procuring External Support for Commissioners project team has been in existence; and for how long Simon Morgan has been the project lead.

Ben Bradshaw: Simon Morgan has been the project lead for the procurement of the Framework for Procuring External Support for Commissioners since July 2006, at the same time that the project team was established.

Homeopathy: Medical Treatments

David Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS patients were treated at the Royal London Homeopathic Hospital in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

Ben Bradshaw: This is a matter for the chair of the University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. We have written to Peter Dixon informing him of the hon. Member's inquiry. He will reply shortly and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Hospitals: Mobile Phones

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance the NHS has issued in the last two years on the use of mobile telephones in hospitals.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department is not aware of any specific guidance issued by the national health service in the last two years on the use of mobile phones in hospitals.
	However, the Department has issued two sets of good practice guidance to the NHS on the use of mobile phones in healthcare premises. The first set of guidance was issued in August 2006, following a request by the Office of Communications and the second set was issued in May 2007, following a recommendation by the Patient Power review group. The guidance concludes that trusts should consider a range of risks and issues when preparing their own policy on mobile phone usage in hospitals, should issue a clear, written, policy which is easily accessible, with the patient at the forefront and designate and clearly signpost areas where mobile phones can and cannot be used.
	Both sets of guidance are available on the Department's website at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/en/Policyandguidance/Organisationpolicy/Estatesandfacilitiesmanagement/index.htm
	Copies have also been placed in the Library.

Leicestershire Primary Care Trust: Finance

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what basis decisions were made on Leicestershire Primary Care Trust's per capita allocation of funding.

Ben Bradshaw: Revenue allocations are made on the basis of a weighted capitation formula which directs funding to those areas of greatest need.
	The components of the formula are used to weight each primary care trust's (PCT) crude population according to their relative need (age and additional need) for healthcare and the unavoidable geographical differences in the cost of providing healthcare (the market forces factor).
	The weighted capitation formula is used to set targets, which then inform allocations. The formula does not determine allocations. The pace of change policy determines actual allocations to PCTs as it reflects decisions on the speed at which PCTs are brought nearer to target through the distribution of extra funds.
	Tables showing the revenue allocations for all PCTs in England for the period 2006-07 to 2007-08 and 2003-04 to 2005-06 are available in the Library.

Maternity Services: Midlands

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans there are for increasing the number of neonatal nurses at  (a) Stoke,  (b) Wolverhampton and  (c) Shrewsbury hospitals over the next two years.

Dawn Primarolo: Decisions about the size and locations of neonatal networks, including the number of hospitals and the number of neonatal nurses are for local decision and should reflect local need and geography.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects to answer the letter to his predecessor of 18 May 2007 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on Mr. Ameen Hadi.

Ben Bradshaw: A reply was issued on 5 June 2007.

Members: Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the Answer to the hon. Member for West Chelmsford's intervention on 3 July,  Official Report, column 854, in the Access to the NHS Services debate and following the meeting of the then Minister of State with the hon. Member for West Chelmsford on 16 May 2007, on the proposed independent sector treatment centre (ISTC) at Braintree, when he expects to reply to the hon. Member for West Chelmsford on the impact of the ISTC on Broomfield Hospital.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 10 July 2007
	 The Department is in discussion with NHS East of England and Essex Primary Care Trusts with regard to their provision of robust local demand and capacity information, which is currently being finalised, in relation to a proposed Independent Sector Treatment Centre for Braintree. Once available, this information will be considered, along with wider information in relation to the scheme, by the Department and a reply to the points raised by the hon. Member for West Chelmsford will be provided. A copy will be placed in the Library.

National Media Evaluations

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 14 March 2007,  Official Report, column 442WA, on national media evaluations, if he will place in the Library a copy of his Department's national media evaluation reports for January 2006 to June 2006 inclusive; and if he will publish the reports on his Department's website.

Ben Bradshaw: Since August 2005, The Department has published its media evaluation reports as part of the Department's wider commitment to Freedom of Information on its website at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Freedomofinformationpublicationschemefeedback/Classesofinformation/Communicationsresearch/index.htm
	The reports for January 2006-November 2006 were published on the website in June and copies have been placed in the Library.

NHS

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 27 June 2007,  Official Report, column 324, on the NHS, what the  (a) type and  (b) location is of each of the 26 different facilities and schemes; when each opened; on what timescale £1.7 billion was invested; and (i) where and (ii) when new staff were provided.

Ben Bradshaw: The information requested is as follows.
	
		
			  Strategic health authority  NHS trust  Value (£m)  Project  Operational date 
			 London Queen Mary's - Sidcup 15 Reprovision of mental health 30 March 2000 
			 London Queen Elizabeth hospital - Greenwich 96 Refurbishment of district general hospital 28 February 2001 
			 London Oxleas - Dartford 11 Mental health reprovision and geriatric day centre 20 December 2001 
			 London Barnet and chase Farm hospitals 54 Redevelopment of Barnet general hospital 2 March 2002 
			 London North East London Mental Health - Goodmayes hospital 11 Acute mental health 4 March 2002 
			 London East London and The City 15 Mental health 11 June 2002 
			 London King's College hospital - Camberwell 76 New hospital block 7 October 2002 
			 London Bromley hospitals 118 New district general hospital 29 March 2003 
			 London West Middlesex University hospital - Isleworth 60 Acute rationalisation 16 May 2003 
			 London St George's Healthcare - Tooting 46 Neurological cardiac 11 September 2003 
			 London Camden and Islington 26 Adult mental health 1 October 2003 
			 London West London Mental Health 14 Mental health scheme 20 February 2004 
			 London Central and North West London 35 Mental health unit at St. Charles hospital 1 September 2004 
			 London Barnet PCT (Edgware Community) 40 Community hospital 15 March 2005 
			 London Brent PCT - Willesden 21 New build mental health facility 21 April 2005 
			 London University College London hospitals 422 Acute rationalisation 12 June 2005 
			 London West London Mental Health - Broadmoor 36 Dangerous and severe 1 October 2005 
			 London Guys and St. Thomas 50 Evelina Children's hospital 31 October 2005 
			 London Hammersmith Hospitals 25 Renal centre 7 November 2005 
			 London East London and The City Mental Health — Tower Hamlets 34 Mental health scheme 1 December 2005 
			 London Wandsworth PCT - Roehampton 75 Redevelopment of Queen Mary's Roehampton. Scheme includes specialist rehabilitation and amputee services 10 March 2006 
			 London North West London hospitals - Willsden 69 Modernisation of Central Middlesex hospital 19 March 2006 
			 London Newham University hospital 55 Reprovision of acute services from 19(th) century St. Andrews to Newham General hospital 8 July 2006 
			 London The Whittington hospital 32 Redevelopment of University hospital including the separation of elective and emergency procedures 27 November 2006 
			 London Lewisham hospital 72 Redevelopment of University hospital including the separation of elective and emergency procedures 27 November 2006 
			 London Barking, Havering and Redbridge hospitals Romford 238 Rationalisation of two sites onto one adjacent to the existing Oldchurch hospital in Romford 6 December 2006 
			  Total 1,745   
		
	
	Information as to when new staff were supplied to each of these schemes is not collected centrally.

NHS: Buildings

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the  (a) value and  (b) total gross internal area was in each of the last three financial years of the building stock on the NHS estate built (i) before 1948, (ii) from 1948 to 1954, (iii) from 1955 to 1964, (iv) from 1965 to 1974, (v) from 1975 to 1984, (vi) from 1985 to 1994, (vii) from 1995 to 2004 and (viii) since 2005.

Ben Bradshaw: The data requested are in the table.
	
		
			   2003-04  2004-05  2005-06 
			  Year of construction  Value  (£ million)  Gross internal area (sq m)  Value (£ million)  Gross internal area (sq m)  Value (£ million)  Gross internal area (sq m) 
			 Pre-1948 3,399 6,612,400 3,622 5,406,460 3,906 5,528,235 
			 From 1948-54 228 493,443 263 436,970 267 373,790 
			 From 1955-64 658 1,446,308 637 1,262,748 758 1,300,259 
			 From 1965-74 2,789 4,959,605 2,701 4,141,706 3,181 4,787,199 
			 From 1975-84 3,030 4,393,995 3,003 4,158,590 3,546 4,579,141 
			 From 1985-94 4,164 4,398,699 4,054 3,629,552 4,719 4,233,166 
			 From 1995-2004 3,909 3,813,554 4,546 3,993,267 4,166 3,786,620 
			 Since 2005 n/a n/a n/a n/a 1,424 1,010,664 
			 n/a = not applicable 
		
	
	The data are as provided by the national health service and have not been amended centrally.
	The accuracy and completeness of these data is the responsibility of the provider organisation.

NHS: Equality

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for what reasons his Department's Gender Equity Project had difficulty gaining access to a contact list of England's Directors of Public Health, as stated on page 15 of his Department's Gender Equity Audit Report, published on 8 June 2007; what steps he has taken to ensure his Department has access to an up-to-date contact list of Directors of Public Health; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: At the time of the project the Department had a list of Regional Public Health Directors but did not have a detailed contact list of all Public Health Directors working in over 302 primary care trusts across England. However, 155 of the 279 invitations were sent directly to Directors of Public Health. Further to the reconfiguration in 2006 a more streamlined approach is now taken when seeking information from national health service organisations. The Chief Executive Bulletin is used to filter down information, and requests for information, to appropriate personnel in the NHS.

NHS: Finance

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the Capital Challenge Fund Scheme funding allocations are of  (a) University Hospital, Birmingham NHS Trust,  (b) Frimley Park NHS Foundation Trust and  (c) University College London NHS Foundation Trust; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: For NHS foundation trusts (NHSFTs), the Capital Challenge Fund offered a potential addition of £300,000 to public dividend capital. In order to receive the addition funding, NHSFTs had to meet the general rules for entitlement to public dividend capital. University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust drew down new public dividend capital of £300,000 from the Fund. Frimley Park NHS Foundation Trust and University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust did not draw down any public dividend capital in 2006-07.

NHS: Finance

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the reasons were for the increase in the gross deficit in the primary care trust sector between 2005-06 and 2006-07.

Ben Bradshaw: The primary care trust (PCT) sector reported a £633 million gross deficit at the end of 2006-07, which is a £17 million deterioration from the position reported at the end of 2005-06. However, the proportion of PCTs reporting a deficit has reduced from 36 per cent. in 2005-06 to 27 per cent. in 2006-07.
	From 2006-07, we have stopped the movement of money round the national health service through brokerage or planned support. As we anticipated, this reform of the NHS financial regime has exposed deficits which might otherwise have remained hidden. As part of the strategy to manage the financial position in their overall economy in 2006-07, strategic health authorities (SHAs) were able to top-slice PCT allocations to create SHA reserves. Although this top-slice may have contributed to the less than 3 per cent. increase in the overall PCT gross deficit, this money is not lost, but held by the SHAs on behalf of the NHS. PCTs are entitled to repayment of their contribution over a reasonable period which should not normally exceed the three-year allocation cycle.
	A clearer measure of PCT financial performance is shown by considering the in-year financial position, as this excludes both the Resource Accounting and Budgeting (RAB) adjustments in respect of prior year performance and the impact of the top-slice of PCT allocations. The in-year deficit of the 55 PCTs that recorded a deficit in 2005-06 was £326 million. This underlying position improved significantly to a £348 million in-year surplus by the end of 2006-07.

NHS: Finance

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects to publish the long-term plans for the 17 NHS trusts which cannot service and repay loans over an acceptable period, as referred to in his Department's report NHS financial performance quarter four, published on 6 June 2007.

Ben Bradshaw: Departmental officials are working closely with strategic health authorities to identify long-term solutions for these 17 trusts. It is intended that the review work will be concluded in the autumn, and that solutions will be prepared in the context of the operating framework for 2008-09.

NHS: Fires

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many fires were reported on the NHS estate as required by FIRECODE policy and principles in each of the last three financial years.

Ben Bradshaw: The figures in the table have been obtained from information contained in the fire database held by the Department. National health service trusts are required to report all outbreaks of fire to which the fire and rescue service attend.
	The figures may not be representative of the actual number of incidents attended by the fire and rescue services as, for example, NHS foundation trusts are not mandated to provide information in relation to fire incidents.
	
		
			  Financial year  Number of incidents 
			 2004-05 1,194 
			 2005-06 1,151 
			 2006-07 1,089

NHS: Repairs and Maintenance

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the repair backlog was of the NHS estate, broken down by  (a) high risk,  (b) significant risk,  (c) moderate risk and  (d) low risk in each of the last three financial years; and what the overall risk adjusted backlog was.

Ben Bradshaw: Information on the levels of backlog maintenance categorised by risk for the national health service estate in England was first collected for 2004-05. The data for financial years 2004-05 and 2005-06 are in table 1. Figures for the overall risk adjusted backlog are in table 2.
	
		
			  Table 1 
			  £ million 
			   2004-05  2005-06 
			  Risk level/definition  Backlog maintenance  Backlog maintenance 
			 High risk—urgent priority work needed to prevent catastrophic failure, major disruption to clinical services or deficiencies resulting in serious injury or prosecution. 358.2 329.9 
			 Significant risk—requires short-term expenditure but can be effectively managed to avoid risk to healthcare services or concern to enforcement bodies. 778.2 982.2 
			 Moderate risk—requires close control and monitoring but can be managed in the medium term. 902.1 1,219.4 
			 Low risk—can be addressed through agreed maintenance programmes or through strategic plans. 1,103.2 1,152.1 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2 
			   2004-05  2005-06 
			 Overall risk adjusted backlog—defined by a formula which takes into account risk over the remaining life of buildings (as assessed by the Valuation Office Agency). 1,342.4 1,703.8 
		
	
	Investment to reduce backlog maintenance will be prioritised locally based on risk assessment, reconfiguration planning and available resources.
	The data provided have not been amended centrally and the accuracy and completeness of these data is the responsibility of the provider organisation.

NHS: Repairs and Maintenance

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the total cost was of building and engineering maintenance on the NHS estate in each of the last three financial years.

Ben Bradshaw: The information requested is provided in the following table.
	
		
			  Total building and engineering maintenance costs 
			  £ million 
			 2003-04 513.6 
			 2004-05 556.1 
			 2005-06 574.8 
		
	
	The costs relate to the amount spent by the national health service in England on the ongoing and day-to-day provision of building and engineering maintenance services.
	The data provided have not been amended centrally and the accuracy and completeness of these data is the responsibility of the provider organisation.

NHS: Standards

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department has undertaken any analysis of the NHS's performance relative to other countries' health care systems in the last two years.

Ben Bradshaw: Yes. International comparisons of health care performance are analysed in support of policy-making and evaluation when such comparisons may be instructive.
	The Department also studies international comparative analysis undertaken by others, such as that carried out by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, The Commonwealth Fund and the Picker Institute.
	We have commissioned specific reviews for particular policy issues, including "Health care outside hospital: accessing generalist and specialist care in eight countries, and Capacity planning in health care: reviewing the international experience". These are publicly available at:
	www.euro.who.int/Document/E89259.pdf
	www.euro.who.int/Document/Obs/EuroObserver9_l.pdf
	The Department has also published comparisons of performance on a range of indicators in the report "Health Profile of England", which has been placed in the Library and is also available at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/idcpig?IdcService=GET_FILE&dID=22190&Rendition=Web
	Tackling health inequalities is an international issue and was a key health theme for the United Kingdom presidency of the European Union in 2005. As part of the presidency, the UK commissioned "Health Inequalities: Europe in Profile", which is available in the Library and at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/groups/dh_digitalassets/@dh/@en/documents/digitalasset/dh_4121584.pdf.

NHS: Standards

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy that data collected through the Quality and Outcomes Framework of the new General Medical Services contract should require gender-specific information.

Ben Bradshaw: The data for the Quality and Outcomes Framework are collected by the Quality Measurement Analysis System (QMAS). QMAS does not have the technical capability to collect patient specific information.

Nurses: Manpower

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many specialist  (a) stoma,  (b) diabetes,  (c) kidney,  (d) Parkinson's disease and  (e) cancer nurses were employed in each of the last five years, broken down by NHS trust.

Ben Bradshaw: This information is not collected centrally.
	The annual national health service workforce census does not separately identify specialist stoma, diabetes, kidney, Parkinson's disease and cancer nurses from the rest of the nursing work force.

Primary Care Trusts

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many collaborative commissioning groups for specialist services were established by primary care trusts in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

Ben Bradshaw: The number of specialised commissioning groups, formed by consortia of primary care trusts, in the last three years, are set out in the following table.
	
		
			   2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 
			 Specialised commissioning groups (SCGs) in England 8 8 10 
			 Local specialised commissioning groups (LSCGs) in England 25 25 0 
			  Note:  In 2005-06 and 2006-07 LSCGs covered specialised services with a planning population of one to two million; SCGs covered a planning population of three to six million. 
		
	
	The overall number reduced from April 2007 following the implementation of the recommendations of Sir David Carter's Review of Commissioning Arrangements for Specialised Services.

Primary Care Trusts: Committees

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what functions exceptional circumstances committees of primary care trusts (PCTs) have; how they operate; what guidance his Department provides to PCTs on the operation of such committees; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: Primary care trusts are able to appoint committees of the trust, but there is no requirement for a special exception committee, an exceptional circumstance committee or other committee to approve treatments. There is no national guidance on the functions and operation of any such committee.

Private Finance Initiative

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions his Department has had with the National Audit Office on its draft report on the private finance initiative.

Ben Bradshaw: In line with established practice, the National Audit Office (NAO) offered the Department an early opportunity to comment on the factual accuracy of the NAO's provisional audit findings.
	The provisional audit findings were never submitted for signing off by the Accounting Officer at the Department because the NAO subsequently decided that they were not sufficiently conclusive to justify a report to Parliament.

Shropshire Primary Care Trust: Finance

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the  (a) original budgeted figures and  (b) actual budget figures were for Shropshire Primary Care Trust in 2006-07.

Dawn Primarolo: The figures for 2006-07 revenue resource limit and capital resource limit for Shropshire County Primary Care Trust (PCT) are shown in the table.
	
		
			   £000 
			  Revenue  
			 Initial revenue resource limit 339,601 
			 Final revenue resource limit 351,539 
			 Charge against revenue resource limit 351,347 
			 Underspend against revenue resource limit 192 
			  Capital  
			 Initial capital resource limit 1,522 
			 Final capital resource limit 7,711 
			 Charge against capital resource limit 5,784 
			 Underspend against capital resource limit 1,927 
			  Notes: The initial capital resource limit (CRL) figure does not include strategic capital or programme capital, which was allocated to strategic health authorities (SHA) for onward distribution to PCTs during the financial year. The final CRL figure includes all capital allocations for programme and strategic capital and any other in year capital transfers requested by the SHA.  Source:  Shropshire County PCT draft accounts

Surgery

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many operations were carried out in NHS hospitals in each of the last five years.

Ben Bradshaw: The table shows the count of finished consultant episodes from 2001-02 to 2005-06.
	
		
			  Count of finished consultant episodes with an operation (opcs-4 codes between A01-X59 or and (operation code not known)) 
			  Data year  Count of FCE with operation 
			 2001-02 6,467,642 
			 2002-03 6,622,992 
			 2003-04 6,780,919 
			 2004-05 6,852,064 
			 2005-06 7,221,638 
			  Source:  Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), The Information Centre for health and social care.

Tomography: Stockport Primary Care Trust

Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) CT and  (b) MRI scanners are installed in facilities in Stockport Primary Care Trust.

Ben Bradshaw: There are no CT or MRI scanners based at Stockport Primary Care Trust facilities.

JUSTICE

Alternatives to Prison

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the merits of enforced curfews as an alternative to imprisonment.

David Hanson: Curfew, which is normally monitored electronically, may be imposed as a condition of bail; as a sentence of the court or as a condition of release from prison. Studies suggest that curfew can be more cost effective than custody and may also help in the rehabilitation of offenders. It can also introduce regularity into what are often chaotic lifestyles and can disrupt the pattern of offending behaviour.
	The Government believe that serious and dangerous offenders should be sent to prison. But where prison is not the right response to offending, a range of tough and demanding community punishments are available to the courts, which can include curfew.
	The Home Detention Curfew scheme enables short term prisoners to be released up to 135 days before the automatic/conditional release date. The scheme is highly successful: 85 per cent. of those released on the scheme have completed it successfully with only 4 per cent. having re-offended while on HDC.

Criminal Records

Michael Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  whether the Data Protection Act 1998 prevents the Parole Board from putting information into the public domain on individual prisoners which might contribute to public protection;
	(2)  whether he has considered bringing forward changes to allow the Parole Board to put more information into the public domain for the protection of the public.

David Hanson: Where it is proposed to share information between public bodies, those bodies must always ensure that they have the power to share those data. Public bodies such as the Parole Board have the power under common law to divulge information for the purpose of public protection in certain circumstances. Therefore, no specific statutory power is required.
	Once is it established that such a power exists, those involved in disclosure must ensure that the exercise of the power to disclose is consistent with the legal framework established by the Data Protection Act 1998 ("the DPA").
	The DPA does not automatically preclude the Parole Board sharing information on individual offenders with the police and probation services if that is necessary to enable those services to carry out their statutory responsibilities to protect the public. Whether disclosure for these purposes is consistent with the DPA will always depend on the individual circumstances of each case and whether the disclosure is truly necessary by reference to those facts.
	Where sharing of data of the type mentioned above takes place, the police and probation services may, in turn, disclose the information to individuals under their own powers, if it is necessary for them to do so in order to manage the risks posed by offenders.
	Taking all of the above into account, there are no proposals to amend legislation in respect of the disclosure of personal data as the current state of the law is sufficient to meet the requirements of public protection.

Driving Offences: Prosecutions

Geoffrey Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice on how many occasions prosecutions for driving without  (a) insurance and  (b) due care and attention were abandoned as a result of the expiration of the statutory time for bringing them forward in each of the last five years, broken down by police force area.

Maria Eagle: The Court Proceedings Database, held by the Office for Criminal Justice Reform, does not record the number of cases abandoned due to the time limitation rule.

Flexible Working: Parents

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will review the adequacy of workplace rights for parents of children with cancer, with particular reference to rights to leave to care for their children.

Patrick McFadden: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government provide extensive rights to leave for parents, including 52 weeks' maternity leave before a child is one and 13 weeks' parental leave until a child is five. In addition, parents of children under six (or under 18 in the case of a disabled child) have the right to request flexible working arrangements, which could be helpful when caring for sick children.
	In 1999, the Government also introduced Time Off for Dependents, which is a right allowing employees to take a reasonable amount of time off work to deal with unexpected emergencies, e.g. to care for a sick child, and to make any necessary longer-term arrangements for dealing with them.

Prison Service: Manpower

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prison officers there were in each year since 1992.

David Hanson: Information on the number of officer grade staff employed within the public sector Prison Service and the contracted estate each year since 1992 is contained in the following table.
	
		
			  Officer grade staff in public sector Prison Service and contracted prisons( 1) 
			   Total officers 
			 31 March 1992 22,961 
			 31 March 1993 24,121 
			 31 March 1994 23,951 
			 31 March 1995 24,448 
			 31 March 1996 24,593 
			 31 March 1997 23,058 
			 31 March 1998 23,602 
			 31 March 1999 24,113 
			 31 March 2000 24,346 
			 31 March 2001(2) 24,023 
			 31 March 2002(2) 23,681 
			 31 March 2003 24,527 
			 31 March 2004(2) 25,461 
			 31 March 2005 26,246 
			 31 March 2006 26,747 
			 31 March 2007(3) 27,053 
			 (1) Figures include both publicly and privately managed establishments. Figures relate to prison officers, senior officers and principal officers within the public sector Prison Service and prison custody officers within contacted prisons. Officers employed within public sector Prison Service headquarters are included. (2) Private contractors have not been able to supply information for; Ashfield and Doncaster prior to 2002, Dovegate in 2004, 2002 and 2001, Forest Bank, Altcourse, Rye Hill and Wolds prior to 2004 and Lowdham Grange in 2005, 2004 and prior to 2002. (3) Figures for 2007 relating to contracted establishments refer to 31 January 2007 except for Parc, Forest Bank, Bronzefield and Peterborough.

Prisoners

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners there are in England, broken down by age.

David Hanson: Age breakdown figures of all prisoners held in prison establishments within England can be found in the table as follows.
	
		
			  Age breakdown for Prison establishments in England, May 2007 
			   Number 
			 All 77,609 
			 15-17 2,396 
			 18-20 8,170 
			 21-24 12,382 
			 25-29 14,812 
			 30-39 21,097 
			 40-49 12,253 
			 50-59 4,378 
			 60-64 1,083 
			 65 and over 1,038 
			  Note: Excluding prisoners held in police cells. 
		
	
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Prisoners

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the prison population was in each year since 1992.

David Hanson: The figures requested are in the table as follows.
	
		
			  Prison Population in England and Wales 1992-2007  Figures as at 30 June 
			   Number 
			 1992 46,832 
			 1993 44,246 
			 1994 48,929 
			 1995 51,084 
			 1996 55,256 
			 1997 61,467 
			 1998 65,727 
			 1999 64,529 
			 2000 65,194 
			 2001 66,403 
			 2002 71,218 
			 2003 73,657 
			 2004 74,488 
			 2005 76,190 
			 2006 77,982 
			 2007(1) 80,264 
			 (1 )May 2007  Sources: i. Prison Statistics England and Wales 1993 and 1994 table 1.2 ii. Offender Management Caseload Statistics 2005, Table 8.1 for 1995-2005 iii. Monthly population in custody Statistics 2006-2007 iv. Population in prison and police cells 
		
	
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Prisoners: Childbirth

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners gave birth in each of the last five years.

David Hanson: The Prison Service has only routinely kept information centrally on births in custody since April 2005. Figures prior to this date are not available.
	The number of prisoners giving birth in the last five years is as follows:
	
		
			   Number 
			 April 2007-6 July 2007 26 
			 April 2006- March 2007 99 
			 April 2005- March 2006 106

Prisoners: Elderly

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners there are over 65 years old, broken down by category of offence committed.

David Hanson: The following table shows the number of prisoners aged 65 and over serving immediate custodial sentences by offence group.
	
		
			  Prisoners( 1)  within England and Wales aged 65 and over by offence category, May 2007 
			   Number 
			 All 1,003 
			 Violence against the person 185 
			 Sexual offences 642 
			 Robbery 5 
			 Burglary 7 
			 Theft and handling 6 
			 Fraud and forgery 15 
			 Drug offences 72 
			 Motoring offences 5 
			 Other offences 65 
			 Offence not recorded 2 
			 (1) Under immediate custodial sentence. 
		
	
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Prisoners: Hepatitis

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many cases of hepatitis B occurred in prisons in each of the last five years.

David Hanson: The last major study of hepatitis B prevalence in prisoners in England and Wales found that of 3,942 prisoners tested (8 per cent.) were infected with hepatitis B.

Prisoners: Mothers

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many pregnant female offenders  (a) applied for and  (b) were granted permission for their children to remain with them in prison after birth in each of the last five years; and what the length was of the sentence served by each mother following birth.

David Hanson: The Prison Service is unable to provide any figures before October 2006 as these were not routinely recorded.
	Between 1 October 2006 and 31 March 2007, there were 83 applications received. From these applications 52 boards sat and 37 were given a place on a mother and baby unit in custody, 31 of the 37 were sentenced women.
	Between 1 April 2007 and 6 July 2007 a total of 34 applications were received, 29 sat boards and 22 women were granted a place. Fourteen of these successful applications were from sentenced mothers.
	The discrepancies between application and board numbers are a result of several possible factors: withdrawn applications, pregnant women released from custody (both on remand and following sentencing), some may in fact still be awaiting boards or the results.
	Information is not held centrally on the time actually served by women in the units.

Prisoners: Mothers

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the number of female prisoners with children under five years old.

David Hanson: The 2003-04 resettlement survey commissioned by the Prison Service Custody to Work Unit showed that half of all female prisoners had dependent children (including stepchildren), and that 46 per cent. of those women had lived with at least one dependent child before custody.

Prisoners: Suicide

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many  (a) male and  (b) female prisoners (i) attempted and (ii) committed suicide in each of the last five years.

David Hanson: There is no definition of what constitutes an attempted suicide, as it is very difficult to measure suicidal intent. The information requested with respect to apparent self-inflicted deaths is contained in the following table:
	
		
			   Number of self-inflicted deaths( 1) 
			   Female  Male 
			 2002 9 86 
			 2003 14 80 
			 2004 13 82 
			 2005 4 74 
			 2006 3 64 
			 (1) The Prison Service definition of self-inflicted deaths is broader than the legal definition of suicide and includes all deaths where it appears that a prisoner has acted specifically to take their own life. This inclusive approach is used in part because inquest verdicts are often not available for some years after a death (some 20 per cent. of these deaths will not receive a suicide or open verdict at inquest). Annual numbers may change slightly from time to time as inquest verdicts and other information become available.

Prisoners: Tuberculosis

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many cases of tuberculosis occurred in prisons in each of the last five years; and what steps he is taking to reduce the incidence of tuberculosis in prisons.

David Hanson: Information is not routinely available from prison establishments on the number of prisoners diagnosed as suffering from tuberculosis (TB). However as TB is a notifiable disease, each new case is reported to the local Consultant in Communicable Disease Control (CCDC).
	The Prison Service's Performance Standard, Health Services for Prisoners (May 2004) requires every prison establishment to have in place effective arrangements for the prevention, control and management of communicable diseases, including tuberculosis. These must include arrangements for the notification of all incidents of notifiable disease, such as TB to the local Health Protection Agency's Consultant in Communicable Disease Control (CCDC) and an action plan in the event of an outbreak of a communicable disease. The diagnosis, care, treatment and management and contact tracing of prisoners with tuberculosis is undertaken in consultation with local national health service specialists in accordance with the British Thoracic Society guidelines for the management of TB.

Prisons

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisons are located in England and Wales.

David Hanson: There are 142 prison establishments in England and Wales. This includes two Immigration Removal Centres, Dover and Haslar, that are managed by the Prison Service on behalf of the Border and Immigration Agency, and establishments managed as single prisons Moorland Open / Moorland Closed, Grendon / Springhill and Usk / Prescoed.

Prisons: Drugs

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent estimate he has made of the number and percentage of the prison population using  (a) cannabis,  (b) ecstasy,  (c) heroin and  (d) cocaine.

David Hanson: The best measure of drug misuse in prisons is provided by the random mandatory drug testing programme. The positive rates for the above named drugs in 2006-07 can be found in the following table:
	
		
			 2006-07 
			   Number of positives  Percentage positive 
			 Cannabis 2,562 4.3 
			 Ecstasy 30 0.04 
			 Opiates 2,411 4.0 
			 Cocaine 96 0.2 
			  Note: Number of confirmed positives—ecstasy is classified as an amphetamine type drug it is not until a confirmation test is conducted that the presence of ecstasy can be determined.

Prisons: Drugs

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people were caught in possession of narcotics while serving prison sentences in each of the last five years.

David Hanson: Information on the number of offences for possessing a controlled drug is given in the following table.
	
		
			   Possession of an unauthorised article 
			 2001 1,837 
			 2002 1,134 
			 2003 1,271 
			 2004 1,315 
			 2005 1,343

Prisons: Genito-urinary Medicine

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what access prisoners have to  (a) condoms,  (b) sexual health advice and  (c) testing for sexually transmitted infections.

David Hanson: Above all other considerations, prisons must maintain good order and discipline for people in custody. They should not therefore take any action that can be interpreted as encouraging overt sexual behaviour by prisoners.
	The Prison Service recognises that sex in prisons occurs and that this brings with it associated public health concerns. Prison doctors therefore have authority to prescribe condoms if, in their clinical judgement, there is a risk of HIV infection or transmission of any other sexually transmitted illness.
	Condoms will not be made available to prisoners without appropriate information and guidance on sexual health education being given first.
	Primary care trusts (PCTs) now have commissioning and clinical governance responsibility for the health services provided within publicly managed prisons. Prisons and PCTs work together through managed co-ordination to ensure that the quality of health care delivered within prisons is comparable to that provided by the national health service for the wider community. Resource allocations are underpinned by prison health needs assessments.
	Sexual health is recognised to be an important health care need and therefore resources are allocated accordingly and to match the need within prisons.
	All prisoners undergo health reception screenings on entry into prison. This is a detailed questionnaire completed by health care staff interviewing the prisoner. It is designed to identify any long-term medical conditions, any use of prescribed medication, any history of alcohol or substance dependence, any mental health problems and any symptoms requiring urgent medical attention or indicating a need for review by a medical doctor.
	Health reception screenings do not include a screen for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) or a blood test for HIV infection.
	Tests for STIs or HIV can be offered to prisoners following a risk assessment by a doctor, or other appropriately trained member of the health care team, if a prisoner presents with signs or symptoms of such infections or describes risk behaviour which may have exposed him or her to such infections.
	Prisoners are also able to request a screen for STIs or HIV if they believe that they may have been exposed to infection.

Probation Officers: Training

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the numbers of people in training as probation officers in each probation service region in each year since 1997; and at what cost per student.

David Hanson: A breakdown of the number of people in training as probation officers and the cost per student is contained in the following tables. Cost information is only available from 2003-04 onwards, when the Home Office took over responsibility for the higher education contracts. It is not possible to provide the information by region.
	
		
			  Trainee Probation Officer figure and costs 
			   Trainee Probation Officer 
			 1997 — 
			 1998 229 
			 1999 523 
			 2000 564 
			 2001 1,096 
			 2002 1,566 
			 2003 1,818 
			 2004 1,774 
			 2005 1,387 
			 2006 1,134 
			  Notes: All figures are given as full time equivalent (FTE), and are rounded up to the nearest full employee. All figures are taken as at 31 December of the relevant year. Figures from 1997 to 2002 are taken from the RDS Probation Statistics, while those for 2003-04 onwards are lifted from the quarterly workforce information report produced by PACU (formerly NPD). 
		
	
	
		
			  Financial year  Cost per student 
			 2003-04 34,517 
			 2004-05 35,367 
			 2005-06 36,167 
			 2006-07 36,227 
			  Note: The new trainee allowance is based upon the trainee base allowance, but adjusted in line with each Board's labour cost factor and pension cost factor. For 2006-07 only, a further pension adjustment was made to the allowance. The figures also include the average university administration cost per year.

Probation Officers: Vacancies

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the number of job vacancies for new entry probation officers in each probation region in each year since 1997.

David Hanson: I am unable to give information regarding the number of job vacancies for new entry probation officers. The numbers for national recruitment for trainee probation officers are communicated to probation areas with the decision to recruit into other posts, including new entry probation officers, being made by local boards.
	Not all probation areas in the national probation service operate a set establishment against which vacant posts can be measured. As a more representative alternative, probation areas are required to report regularly on the number of active vacancies they have. An active vacancy is one which a probation area is actively trying to fill through a recruitment process. The information that is collected is an overall figure for probation officers and does not distinguish those who are new entrants.

Rape: Sentencing

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 25 June 2007,  Official Report, column 357W, on rape: sentencing, what his assessment is of the reasons for the differences in sentences given in Northern Ireland compared to those in England and Wales; and if he will take steps to bring the different sentences into line.

David Hanson: The sentencing framework and policy remains the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Office in Northern Ireland and for the Ministry of Justice in England and Wales. Differences have historically occurred in operational practice.
	The Northern Ireland Office undertook a comprehensive public consultation on proposals for reviewing the sentencing framework for Northern Ireland in 2006, and it will be publishing proposals based on this consultation in due course.

Young Offender Institutions

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what plans he has to increase young offender institution capacity.

David Hanson: As part of the 8,000 capacity programme, the National Offender Management Service is planning to provide additional capacity for young offenders including places at Belmarsh East, Hindley, Portland, Stoke Heath and Brinsford.

Young Offender Institutions

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of trends in the young offender institution population over the next 10 years.

David Hanson: The latest projections of the prison population 2006 to 2013 were published in Home Office Statistical Bulletin 11/06, "Prison population projections 2006-2013, England and Wales", on the Home Office website in July 2006. These projections do not estimate the population in young offender institutions, which accommodate 15 to 20-year-olds, separately.

Young Offenders: Sentencing

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many offenders under the age of 21 years found guilty of an offence were given a  (a) custodial sentence and  (b) non-custodial sentence in each of the last 10 years.

Maria Eagle: The information requested, for the years 1995 to 2005, is contained in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of persons( 1)  under the age of 21 sentenced to custodial and non-custodial( 2)  sentences, all courts, England and Wale s 
			  Number of persons 
			  Type of sentence  1995  1996  1997  1998  1999  2000 
			 Non-custodial(2) 196,080 205,648 212,683 229,196 229,908 227,715 
			 Immediate custody 19,203 21,247 22,868 24,220 25,664 25,855 
			 Total 215,283 226,895 235,551 253,416 255,572 253,570 
		
	
	
		
			  Number of persons 
			  Type of sentence  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			 Non-custodial(2) 227,848 229,153 232,960 231,626 222,008 
			 Immediate custody 25,544 24,779 21,638 20,961 20,246 
			 Total 253,392 253,932 254,598 252,587 242,254 
			 (1) Principal offence basis. (2) Absolute and conditional discharge, fine, community sentence, suspended sentence order and otherwise dealt with.  Note: These figures have been drawn from administrative data systems. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.  Source: RDS-NOMS, Ministry of Justice